With Ms. Irizarry's appearance lasting about an hour and senators asking few questions, it was hard to tell what her prospects of approval were with the committee, which had appeared inclined to approve her nomination when the hearing began.
But it is in coalition with the largest party, Golkar, headed by Mr Kalla, which should help the prospects of approval.A lasting peace deal in Aceh could bring broader benefits to the whole regionThe widespread international attention paid to Aceh after the tsunami may have helped to persuade the government, and indeed the rebels, to try a little harder to reach a deal.
The bill's prospects of approval were greatly enhanced when, on June 18th, a court in Milan upheld the media tycoon's appeal against his convictions for allegedly paying for underage sex with Ms El-Mahroug and misusing his authority to try to conceal their relationship.
In a similar instance last month, Indias Essar Group agreed to give up plans for an oil refinery in Iran after the Minnesota state government said the move could hurt the prospects of approval of the companys planned $1.8 billion steel project in the state.
The mere prospect of its approval seems, meanwhile, to have inspired a "go-for-it" attitude among farmers, ranchers, and loggers in the Amazon.
The most troubling aspect of the federal bills that are being considered is the boost they would give to more controversial treatments, for which any evidence is so poor that the prospect of FDA approval is wholly imaginary.
The Senate plan also includes a proposal that the Republicans say they hope will increase the prospects for approval of oil exploration in environmentally sensitive areas of Alaska.
Democratic senators indicated increasing optimism about the prospects for approval of the fiscal blueprint after they pared spending and made other adjustments.
President Duhalde has clouded prospects for approval of his antipatronage plan, though, by linking it to a sweeping reform package to avoid what he calls "excessive electioneering".
Time Warner's spokesman in New York, Edward Adler, broadly acknowledged today that the company's prospects for approval of its deal with AOL looked good while those for the EMI deal were more problematic.
