Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) organized the rare all-night session in an attempt to dramatize the fight between Republicans and Democrats over the amendment.

The amendment, which was attached to the Department of Defense authorization bill, had majority support thanks to several Republicans who backed it. But Republicans used a procedural maneuver available to the minority party to require a 60-vote majority to move the bill forward.

Democrats only mustered 52 votes in favor of invoking cloture, falling short of the 60 required. Forty-seven senators voted against cloture. Reid at first voted in favor of cloture, but changed his vote at the last minute to join Republicans opposing it.

Reid’s vote against cloture allows him to call for another vote on the measure at a time of his choosing, according to spokesman Jim Manley, who said the switch was “only for procedure.”

Reid expressed his disappointment at the outcome shortly after the vote but pledged to keep trying to pass legislation aimed at changing course in Iraq.

"We spent two days showing America that we're not going to back down, that we're going to continue to fight," he said. "How could we possibly shrink from this fight? How could we possibly try to avoid this fight?"

Reid had accused Republicans of obstructionism for blocking a simple-majority up-or-down vote on the amendment. But Republicans defended their maneuver as a standard tool of the minority party.

In a news conference before the all night session began Tuesday, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) said that "time after time when the other side was in the minority they also invoked the 60-vote requirement."

The California Court of Appeal, in a 2-1 decision, said that Daniel and Kathleen Sheehan waived their privacy concerns because they knew of the pat-down searches before they bought their tickets for the 2006-2007 season. They sued in December 2005 after experiencing pat-down searches that season.

The court said the couple could quit going to games if they were offended by the searches.

"By voluntarily re-upping for the next season under these circumstances, rather than opting to avoid the intrusion by not attending the games at Monster Park, the Sheehans impliedly consented to the pat-downs," Justice Timothy Reardon wrote for the majority, adding that the "Sheehans have no reasonable expectation of privacy."

Justice Maria Rivera dissented, arguing that her colleagues too easily tossed aside the Sheehans' privacy concerns.

"The courts' role in protecting privacy rights should not be so readily abdicated," Rivera wrote, noting that the Sheehans have no other way to watch the team in person. "If you are the only game in town, requiring your customers to either submit to a pat-down search or walk away does not present the kind of genuine choice upon which the majority's reasoning is premised."

ACLU lawyers, who helped the Sheehans with their lawsuit, and a 49ers spokeswoman did not immediately return calls for comment.

A federal appeals court in Florida and a federal district court judge in Seattle each ruled similarly in upholding pat-down searches at Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Seattle Seahawks home games.

Mr. Morford was named as a temporary deputy, but officials said he was likely to be named as the official candidate for the job after background checks are completed. He would succeed Paul J. McNulty, who is preparing to leave next month.

In the Justice Department, Mr. Morford has earned a reputation for successfully handling difficult assignments with a deft, aggressive style. As a prosecutor in Cleveland, he led the government team that won a conviction in the 2002 corruption trial of James Traficant Jr., a former Democratic representative from Ohio who was sentenced to more than eight years in prison.

In 2004, Attorney General John Ashcroft appointed Mr. Morford to lead an internal investigation into misconduct by federal prosecutors in Detroit, an inquiry that caused the government to ask a federal judge to throw out terrorism verdicts against two men convicted of operating a sleeper cell. Mr. Morford went to Nashville last year.

In announcing the appointment, Mr. Gonzales said in a statement: "With 20 years of experience as a Justice Department prosecutor, I am pleased to have a person of Mr. Morford’s exemplary character and integrity in this critical position at this time."

Senator Charles E. Schumer, a New York Democrat who has been scathingly critical of Mr. Gonzales, said the appointment was a positive step. "Mr. Morford starts out with one thing going for him: He’s a career prosecutor and not a politician," said Mr. Schumer, who has led the Senate investigation of the dismissals. "We’ll be watching closely to make sure that the rule of law comes first and foremost under his watch."

"Part of our strategy is we work with... countries from which we import goods, to make sure that their procedures and practices will give us comfort," he said. "Finally we'll be working with companies that import goods from around the world, to make sure that their practices meet the high standards that we set for the United States."

Mr Bush has established a new panel to review the import rules. Speaking after meeting members of the new panel at the White House, Mr Bush said he believed the Government was on top of the situation.

But his comments fell short of the demands of some senators, who have called for a permanent import tsar with broader powers to oversee the safety of goods imported into the US. The panel is expected to make its recommendations on ways to improve the safety of imported goods in 60 days.

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court upheld the decision to allow the development of two waterfront casinos in Philadelphia.

The decision affirms the decision of state regulators to allow Foxwoods Casino Philadelphia and SugarHouse Casino to open slots parlors on Columbus Boulevard in Philadelphia. The case was brought by a rival casino proposal whose application was rejected.

However, both casinos must still get city approvals. The casinos could open as early as next year, pending city approvals.

It's likely neighborhood groups, who have fought the proposals, will continue their opposition.

The Pennsylvania Supreme Court upheld the decision to allow the development of two waterfront casinos in Philadelphia.

The decision affirms the decision of state regulators to allow Foxwoods Casino Philadelphia and SugarHouse Casino to open slots parlors on Columbus Boulevard in Philadelphia. The case was brought by a rival casino proposal whose application was rejected.

However, both casinos must still get city approvals. The casinos could open as early as next year, pending city approvals.

It's likely neighborhood groups, who have fought the proposals, will continue their opposition.