At a lunch at TIAA-CREF offices in New York on Sept. 11, Mr. Pitt and Harvey J. Goldschmid, another commissioner, told Mr. Biggs that they would support him for the job if he wanted it, senior agency officials and Congressional aides briefed about the meeting said.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has settled on William H. Webster, the former F.B.I. and C.I.A. director, to head a new agency regulating the accounting profession, commission officials and Congressional aides briefed about the decision said today.

Two Democratic aides briefed on his meeting with Senator Charles E. Schumer, Democrat of New York, said that when the senator pressed him about an opinion he had written involving the regulation of machine guns, Judge Alito grew defensive - something else Chief Justice Roberts never did.

Dependent on Friends Navy officials and Congressional aides briefed on the case said the psychological profile of Mr. Hartwig assembled by the F.B.I.'s Center for Analysis of Violent Crimes does not prove homosexuality, but suggests that he tended to form dependent relationships with the few friends he had.

A senior congressional aide briefed on the rules of engagement added:

Democratic aides briefed on the meeting said officials of the groups made a last-ditch plea for a filibuster.

Democratic and Republican aides briefed about the meeting said Dr. Frist refused to rule out changing the filibuster rules for judges unless Democrats promised not to use them against judicial nominees.

Republican aides briefed on the search said the White House was looking mainly at female jurists for Justice O'Connor's seat, but it has expanded its short list and it is examining the contenders anew in the expectation of a trial by fire.

But a Congressional aide briefed on the matter, granted anonymity because he was not authorized to speak publicly about it, said the information was on disks.