I don’t know that the Miers nomination was a ploy that in depth on W’s part, however, I do think he’s a very shrewd operator and recognized an opportunity which he wisely took.
Under the circumstances, Bush probably got the two best justices confirmed he could have. I really don't think Roberts and Alito are in the mold or Thomas and Scalia, but they should be reliable on conservative issues as Reinhquist. I really wished Bush has tried to get a more staunch conservative like Janice Rogers Brown first arguing we are just replacing a conservative with a conservative. Roberts and Alito are brillian enough and have such an outstanding judicial record that it would be hard to block their confirmation under any circumstances.