Despite ongoing efforts to avert what some lawmakers call a constitutional crisis, Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid said there was no political talk over a dinner of duck al'orange at Frist's home.

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And Frist says that at that point, he's going to take this issue up again.

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The response from Frist came four minutes after Reid's appearance at the Capitol steps.

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House Speaker Dennis Hastert, an Illinois Republican, and Frist delivered the news to Bush during a meeting at the White House, the sources said.

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And it was not clear that Frist had the votes to do so successfully: At least three Republican senators have indicated they would not support such a move.

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At the start of this campaign, George Allen and Rick Santorum and Bill Frist were potential candidates.

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"The reality is there is not going to be a standard-bearer, per se, until the next presidential election, " said Alex Vogel, a former senior aide at the RNC, the National Republican Senatorial Committee and for ex-Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist.

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