The 72-day extraordinary Diet session comes to a close today with Prime Minister Yoshiro Mori clinging to power despite a series of challenges that could have ousted him from office.
Mori hopes to re-establish his influence by reshuffling his Cabinet and the top executives of the Liberal Democratic Party early next week, and LDP power brokers suggest he may stay on for several more months -- as long as he doesn't make any more blunders.
Mori survived his latest and most crucial trial last week when LDP elders used carrot-and-stick tactics to successfully crush the rebellion of Koichi Kato and his allies, making them back down from their threat to oust Mori's Cabinet by supporting a no-confidence motion submitted by the opposition camp.