21.   Yet on Wednesday he criticized the bill for having grown like Topsy, completely ignoring the fact that Republican amendments contributed to the situation he was deploring.

22.   Gephardt and other supporters of the bill said they wanted time to review the Republican amendment before it was voted on.

23.   The Republican amendment approved Wednesday removed the repeal from the bill.

24.   The two sides are also still at loggerheads over a Republican constitutional amendment requiring a balanced budget, which the president opposes.