Left Hanging

In the end, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff and Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez were left hanging.

Like lowly Senate staffers, the two spent half an hour waiting outside the Senate chamber to greet lawmakers on their way to cast a key immigration vote, trying in vain to secure a key domestic policy victory for President Bush.

And when a cloture motion on the Senate immigration bill failed 46-53, ending near-term hopes for a bill, the two Cabinet members were left wanting.

As secret service agents tried to swat away pesky reporters, the secretaries waited patiently, Gutierrez sipping coffee and leaning against a post to pass the time.

"We are pulling out all the stops," Chertoff said.

And the two got an earful from many of the senators who stopped by.

"I don't think you appreciate what is going on out there," said Sen. Larry Craig (R-Idaho), referring to the heat many Republicans faced from talk radio hosts.

But, Craig added: "This is such a much better bill because you guys waded into it."

In the end, however, the push proved to be too little too late, as the effort to move the bill along collapsed.

"Obviously, I am disappointed," Chertoff said. "But the problem is still here so we have to come to a solution."

The next time, though, the two will know exactly where to hang.

- Daniel W. Reilly