He's a big-time player. He can change the entire level of our play in the back, simply based on his experience and his level of play. He's been a winner everywhere he's been. I hope that's not going to change here.

[Waiting his turn among a crowded roster represents a change for Rather, who served as the face of the] CBS Evening News ... I think it's hard to leave the anchor chair. That takes an adjustment.

It's like managing an all-star team. Not everybody gets in as many innings, but the quality of the play is better. This place has always been competitive. They all want to get on the air so they're making their stories better. Who's that bad for besides the competition?

The legislators are confused and scared right now. But that doesn't change a thing for us.

The leaders of this Congress need to figure out a way to change this (legislation) to address the important civil liberties issues that I and other Senators from both sides of the aisle have discussed over the past three days.

The president is not telling us the time frame ... what's happening is that the American public is despairing of the situation,