President Clinton stood by all day yesterday to intervene when called on in the Northern Ireland talks, mindful of how he was able to give a decisive push to the Good Friday Agreement in the small hours.
While he was in Chicago, where he attended a baseball game and a fund-raiser, he spoke to British Prime Minister, Mr Tony Blair who briefed him on the latest situation.
"I'm following the Irish peace talks obviously very closely... and I will do whatever I can to be helpful," he told reporters after his conversation with Mr Blair.
"I'm hoping for the best," he said, adding, "If anybody fails to fulfil any conditions, including the decommissioning, at any time in the future by the appropriate deadline it can always be taken down, but it shouldn't be taken down in the absence of a failure to fulfil conditions."
In this rather tortured language, the President seemed to be indicating that he supported the proposal that Sinn Fein would agree to a detailed timetable for decommissioning and in return they would be allowed to serve in the executive under Mr Trimble.
But if the decommissioning did not take place as agreed, then the UUP would be entitled to walk away from the Belfast Agreement.
Meanwhile, officials at the White House were keeping in touch with the Irish Government delegation at the Stormont talks, with Mr Jim Steinberg and Mr Larry Butler of the National Security staff making continuous calls and briefing the President in Chicago.
As the midnight deadline passed, the President spoke again to reporters in Chicago and indicated that he had not yet made his planned intervention with the political leaders, Mr Trimble and Mr Adams.
The President said that the White House was in touch with the various parties and "I expect to make some more phone-calls sometime in the next hour or so."
"It's an all-nighter," he said and predicted that the work in Belfast would go on "quite late".
But several hours later, the President had still not made his calls according to officials at the White House. He was due back in Washington at about 5.30 a.m. Irish time.