"Every avenue will be taken to stop this bill and if that fails, I think the president will veto it," Thurmond said.

"I just can't believe Republicans would kill a death-penalty bill," said Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. (D-Del.) chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee. "For the Republicans to vote against capital punishment--I'd like to see it."

Biden and other Democrats accused Republicans of trying to stop enactment of the crime package this fall to give Bush an election-year issue in 1992.

"The president would be happy if we didn't get anything ... so he could have a political victory," Biden said.

Schumer predicted "if this bill reaches the president he will sign it. He doesn't want to veto a tough crime bill." But Schumer said the administration wants an issue and "word went out to the Republicans--stop this bill at any cost."

Schumer said Democrats plan to bring the crime bill up for a vote on the House floor today as Congress races to complete its business in time for the Thanksgiving holiday.

Dropped from the House-Senate compromise was a Senate-passed provision that would make street handgun murders a federal crime punishable by death.

Federal judges said the measure, introduced by Sen. Alfonse D'Amato (R-N.Y.) would flood the already overburdened federal courts with murder cases that should best be prosecuted in state courts.

Negotiators adopted Senate language on the standard of proof for death-penalty cases. In cases where death results, prosecutors would have to prove the defendant intended to kill the victim.

The House had adopted a lower standard of proof that would have allowed execution of defendants found guilty of showing a reckless disregard for human life.

The bill, however, also provides for execution of drug dealers convicted of dealing in massive quantities of illegal substances even if no death results.

Proponents argued that this provision would allow prosecution of someone where authorities could not directly prove that drug-dealing had caused the overdose deaths of users.

Defendants convicted of attempted presidential assassinations and attempts in the lives of other high-ranking officials could be subjected to the death penalty.

The negotiators also rejected a House provision, backed by Bush, that would allow improperly seized evidence to be used in federal court. Instead, the negotiators adopted a Senate provision that would allow such evidence only if police make a "good faith" mistake in executing a search warrant.

The bill would provide money to states to beef up police patrols in cities, set up residential drug treatment programs for prisoners and start boot camp programs for eligible offenders.