Their jubilation was short-lived, however, as the networks soon declared

Florida "too close to call." A silence fell over the visibly shaken occupants of the Nashville Sheraton Downtown, headquarters for Gore's victory celebration. They had come so far, and victory had seemed so close.

Gore and Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman were in the midst of a private dinner with their wives at the Loews Vanderbilt Plaza Hotel when the networks called the three states. They cheered, finished their dinner and went back to giving phone interviews to radio stations.

As the polls closed, the Gore campaign shifted its get-out-the-vote resources westward. Gore himself gave a score of television interviews in battleground areas like Philadelphia, Kansas City, Des Moines, Albuquerque and Detroit; he also gave more than 30 radio addresses in western locales.

Tipper Gore and Lieberman joined in the battle, doing interviews via satellite for Portland, Green Bay and Seattle. Downstairs, the hotel staff had begun to bring out the champagne glasses after Florida went to Gore--but their celebration would prove premature.

Around midnight, rain clouds finally burst on the War Memorial crowd--and the electoral skies darkened as well. The tide turned against the vice president, as outside his supporters began being soaked by a steady light rain.

After the last polls closed on the West Coast, the Gore spin operation shut down. Aides, with beers in hand, closed the doors and sat down in front of the single television in the room to watch the returns flow in.