WASHINGTON —  Sen. Arlen Specter, R-Pa., has always been a stickler for strict time limits, or maintaining what's known on Capitol Hill as the "Specter Clock."

He wasn't about to relax those standards Thursday when senators got their first crack at questioning Kyle Sampson, the former top aide to embattled Attorney General Alberto Gonzales.

As evening set in on Sampson's daylong testimony, Specter, the former Judiciary Committee chairman and now senior Republican on the committee, quietly passed a note to Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y. with a minute-by-minute tally of how long the New York Democrat had taken with his slew of questions.

"Time's Up," scrawled Specter, amid crossed-off notations down to the half-minute.

Schumer finally said he would wrap up, adding that the Pennsylvania Republican "is importuning me on."

No, Specter countered: "I'm importuning you off."

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