Last night, Saks' chief spokeswoman, Julia Bentley, said she had no further comment.

He quit in 1988 over frustrations with the bureaucracy, said Carol Hector-Harris, who was the chief spokeswoman for the agency when he worked there.

As chief spokeswoman for an industry under siege, she revels in the challenge of a hostile political environment.

Karen P. Hughes, chief spokeswoman for the Bush campaign, criticized the announcement.

Janet Parshall, chief spokeswoman for the conservative Family Research Council, also condemned the coalition's mailing.

Marilyn Mode, chief spokeswoman for the Police Department, said yesterday that 50 tow trucks had waited downtown.

As the assistant secretary of defense for public affairs, Ms. Clarke was the chief spokeswoman for a high-profile defense secretary.

"There is quite an array of allegations concerning this particular teacher," said Chiara Coletti, chief spokeswoman for the board.

"This isn't something that happens all the time," Brigid Quinn, chief spokeswoman for the agency, said.

His chief spokeswoman, Peg Breen, said later that members of the Rules Committee would have access to information from the confidential background checks.