Mr. Dukakis lost his closest political confidant last fall.

Mr. Sharif's lawyers and some of his political confidants raise questions about the timing of such destiny.

Mr. Verney is the closest political confidant of Mr. Perot, the party's founder.

A political confidant, inexplicably too timid to say something nice on the record, offered this: "He's your regular guy.

They said that although Mr. Bush had assured his long-time political confidant that he could remain, other Cabinet positions are up for grabs.

Some of his closest political confidants were under indictment on corruption charges, and many of them would ultimately go to prison.

Mother and daughter worked as unpaid aides and political confidants of Mr. De Sapio, whose modest lifestyle earned him the nickname "the bishop."

Instead of choosing a professional with expertise in responses to disaster to head the agency, Mr. Bush appointed Joseph Allbaugh, a close political confidant.

The first major contract to develop the site went to a company that hired a Menendez friend and political confidant, Donald Scarinci, to lobby for it.