Attorney General Alberto Gonzales' allies on Capitol Hill have grown more scarce as he left it largely to aides to carry out President Bush's order to straighten out the story behind the firing of eight federal prosecutors.

Senate Republicans leaving their weekly policy lunch Tuesday no longer bothered to defend Gonzales' response to lawmakers' questions about the firings. At most, they mustered an appeal to withhold judgment until the attorney general testifies before the Senate Judiciary Committee on April 17.

That was Sen. Arlen Specter's message during the closed-door meeting, according to three senators who were present.

"Senator Specter today said to give (Gonzales) a fair chance," said Sen. Jeff Sessions, an Alabama Republican and a staunch White House ally who lunched with Gonzales last week. "I think people are trying to do that. But there are some inconsistent stories he (Gonzales) is going to have to explain."

Among them: Why Gonzales said March 13 that he "never saw documents" and "never had a discussion" about the firings. Recently released documents show he participated in an hourlong meeting and approved a detailed plan on the dismissals 10 days before they were carried out.

Gonzales has maintained he was not closely involved in the firings, and did not help select which prosecutors would be told to resign.

Monica Goodling's announcement that she would take the Fifth Amendment to avoid possibly incriminating herself came as the embattled attorney general cast himself as misunderstood in his conflicting accounts of his involvement in the firings. Goodling is the Justice Department's liaison to the White House.

Gonzales was to be in Cincinnati and Chicago on Tuesday in the latest leg of a multistate tour to promote a crackdown on child sex abuse and soothe U.S. attorneys who might be smarting over the dismissals.

Fending off calls for his resignation, Gonzales on Monday said he was "really pained" by Republicans and Democrats who say he has lost his credibility in dealing with the firings. A growing number of critics say the dismissals were politically motivated.

He sought to stem the furor over his March 13 statement that he "never saw documents" and "never had a discussion" about the firings. His schedule for last Nov. 27 showed he participated in an hourlong meeting and approved a detailed plan on the dismissals. He maintained he was not closely involved in the firings, and did not help select which prosecutors would be told to resign.

The appeals court said Lamberth, who held successive Democratic and Republican Interior Department secretaries in contempt of court, had lost his objectivity in the case.

The court also refused to review another appeals court ruling that reversed Lamberth’s order that the Interior Department disconnect its computers from the Internet for failing to provide adequate security for the Indians’ trust records.

The class-action suit, filed in 1996 by Elouise Cobell of the Blackfeet Tribe in Montana, deals with individual Indians’ lands. Several tribes have also sued, claiming mismanagement of their lands.

Earlier this month the government proposed paying $7 billion to settle the lawsuits, but only roughly half of that would go to the plaintiffs.

Lawmakers have said they plan hearings on the proposal. The Indians have said they would accept $27.5 billion to end the litigation.

President Bush, making a brief statement to reporters in the Rose Garden, struck an optimistic tone that echoed how aides said Snow was feeling. Mr. Bush said he looked forward to the day when Snow returns to the White House.

"His attitide is one that he is not going to let this whip him," Mr. Bush said. "My attitude is that we need to pray for him."

Snow underwent surgery Monday to remove a small growth in his lower abdomen, a procedure he said last Friday was being done "out of an aggressive sense of caution" because he had colon cancer two years ago.

Doctors determined that the growth was cancerous, and found during the surgery, which was exploratory, that his cancer had metastasized, or spread, to his liver, Perino said.

On the floor of the House of Representatives, Congressman Roy Blunt, R-Mo., said, "I've known Tony, we've all known Tony, for a long time and my belief is if anybody has the stamina and the fortitude and the positive nature to deal with this challenge, he has it," Blunt, who has also battled cancer, said.

"We're wishing him well and frankly hope he is back to work soon, because we need him," Blunt said.

Asked why he would want to remain as attorney general amid so many calls for his ouster, Gonzales said he‘s been asking himself lately whether it‘s appropriate for him to stay in his job.

But, he said, "at the end of the day, it‘s not about Alberto Gonzales. It‘s about this great Department of Justice that does so many wonderful things for the American people."

The House voted 329-78 to strip the attorney general of his power to indefinitely appoint federal prosecutors, approving a bill similar to one passed in the Senate. President Bush , who is standing by Gonzales, has signaled that he will not veto the legislation.