U.S. Attorney John Brownlee's bid to become a federal judge, which received an unusually tepid review from two bar groups, ended Thursday one step from the White House.

Brownlee was not among the seven candidates recommended to President Bush by Sens. John Warner and Jim Webb.

From the beginning, Brownlee's candidacy was a source of intrigue in legal circles. As the only candidate from Western Virginia to express an interest in judgeships in Richmond and Alexandria, he was seen as both an outsider and someone with an inside track because of his close relationship with Warner.

But his stock fell in early March, when statewide bar groups began to vet the 13 candidates.

In a report to Warner and Webb, the Virginia State Bar wrote that "substantial concerns arose from significant and credible adverse information" it received about Brownlee. Bar officials would not elaborate.

And the Virginia Women Attorneys Association questioned whether Brownlee "possesses the requisite judgment and discretion to serve as a judge at this stage in his career in light of his exercise of prosecutorial discretion."

Although both bar groups found Brownlee to be qualified, he met only their minimal requirements and was the subject of pointed language generally not directed at the other contenders.

"I think it's pretty unusual," said Carl Tobias, a law professor at the University of Richmond who has studied the selection process for federal judges.

The comments "were surprisingly negative," he said. "But prosecutors always rub some people the wrong way, there's no question about that."

In a letter to Bush, Warner and Webb submitted seven names for the two judgeships: Circuit Judge Joanne Alper of Arlington, Circuit Judge Mark Davis of Portsmouth, federal magistrate Dennis Dohnal of Richmond, assistant U.S. Attorney David Novak of Montpelier, administrative law judge Jeri Somers of Arlington, Circuit Judge Jonathan Thacher of Fairfax and attorney Anthony Trenga of Alexandria.

The senators said in the letter that they had considered all of the applicants' credentials and conducted personal interviews from "a very strong field of candidates."

Staffers for Warner, R-Va., and Webb, D-Va., declined to elaborate Thursday.

It is now up to Bush to nominate two candidates who will then be subject to Senate approval.

Tobias said it was hard to say whether Brownlee's candidacy was hurt more by his not being from eastern Virginia or by the negative comments from the bar groups.

"The geography made it more of an uphill fight, but I suspect when the senators saw some of that coming from the bar, discretion may have been the better part of valor," Tobias said.

Although the bar groups never spelled out their concerns, Brownlee's six-year tenure as Western Virginia's top federal prosecutor has been marked by controversy over several high-profile cases in which critics accused his office of over-reaching.

In a prepared statement, Brownlee said: "I greatly appreciate Senators Warner and Webb inviting me to interview for these most prestigious positions.

"I am confident President Bush will nominate two outstanding lawyers to be our federal judges. I wish all the candidates the very best."