I haven't heard anybody put a hard timetable on it like that. I think you've seen an acceleration in the pace.

Having served as the majority spokesman for the House Ways and Means Committee after Republicans took the House in 1994, I've seen the promise and the peril of divided government before.

I think it is fair to say that the nation is on the threshold of having a patients' bill of rights that can be signed into law. There is some additional work that needs to be done, but many of the differences that remain are easily bridgeable.

I think that from the president's point of view, Sen. Lott has addressed this issue. He has apologized for his statement, and the president understands that is the final word from Sen. Lott.

So I don't think anybody can draw conclusions based on five days, and that's separate and apart from the bigger picture of, 'Do you trust Saddam Hussein?'

a thankless job. . . . Always a flak-catching job.