He also expressed some concern that taking action against Flynn might interfere with the investigation of him — a concern Yates said she sought to assuage, noting that the F.B.I. had already interviewed Flynn.
The plaintiffs had sought to move ahead, noting that the most recent allegations occurred in 2002 and that witnesses' memories are fading.
Mr. Case sought to assuage concerns, noting that many Internet service providers are waiting until after the merger to negotiate for access to Time Warner's cable systems and saying the messaging technology could be compatible with other systems.
Monday's announcement sought to strike a note of respect for a relationship portrayed as longstanding.
Where John Coltrane, later in the decade, sought to play every note in a chord and multiplied his series of chords seemingly to the horizon, Taylor, already in 1956, left chordal jazz behind and spun musical material of his own choosing (whether harmonic, motivic, melodic, or rhythmic) into kaleidoscopic cascades of sound.
His advisers concede, however, that the theme became muddled as they sought to hit other notes and as Mr. Romney struggled, in the face of relentless questions about his core convictions, to establish his conservative bona fides.
The Romney campaign has sought to discredit that study, noting that its author served on the president's Council of Economic Advisers.
Japanese officials sought to dispel that theory, noting that past disasters such as a 1995 earthquake did not create such an effect.
Others questioned why prosecutors had sought to hold him; they noted that had Mr. Strauss-Kahn been released on bail, prosecutors would have had weeks to investigate the complaint and secure an indictment.
Mr. Baker, the Republican challenger, has sought to highlight social issues, noting Mr. Evans's support for abortion rights and gay rights and his opposition to a constitutional amendment that would allow Congress to ban flag-burning.
