He said the Administration would do its homework before making another effort to pass the fast-track bill.

For months, Democrats had cautioned the President that they were concerned over what the fast-track bill would look like.

The fast-track bill will be called in the Senate only when the White House knows it has the 60 votes necessary to invoke cloture.

The fast-track bill, she said, was the political price of getting votes for the Highlands legislation.

The fast-track bill, Mr. Obey said, was "a further walking away from the traditional values of the Democratic Party."

That was in early December, just before the House of Representatives narrowly approved the fast-track bill.

As much as any other issue, the fate of the fast-track bill in 1997 will determine whether our budget balances in 2002.

Whether Mr. McGreevey made any new friends with the fast-track bill is not clear.

But Senator Sweeney said that the fast-track bill would spur economic growth and sensible development by cutting bureaucracy.

This morning Mr. Clinton vowed to try again next year to pass the fast-track bill and offered a partial apology for his words.