who may have been an illegal immigrant to the United States. However, the nanny has not yet been located, leading some to believe the nanny story was an invention created to divert attention away from Kerik's other problems. Other controversies which may have contributed to Kerik's declining the nomination included an alleged outstanding arrest warrant from 1998 stemming from unpaid bills on the maintenance of a condominium (documents regarding this warrant were faxed to the White House less than three hours before Kerik submitted his withdrawal of acceptance to the President) and questions regarding Kerik's sale of stock in Taser International shortly before the release of an Amnesty International report critical of the company's stun-gun product. Kerik has also been accused of being involved in at least two extramarital affairs. One of the affairs occurred in the aftermath of 9/11. Kerik allegedly used an apartment intended for police business that overlooked The Pile for the affair. On January 12, five weeks after the withdraw of Kerik's nomination, Bush announced his next choice for director of Homeland Security, Michael Chertoff. Chertoff was a judge for the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, which handles appeals from New Jersey, Delaware, Pennsylvania and the Virgin Islands. Before becoming a judge he was Assistant Attorney General for the Department of Justice's criminal division from 2001 to 2003. Also, between 1994 and 1996, Chertoff was counsel to the GOP-run Senate Whitewater Committee investigating the business dealings of President Clinton and then-First Lady Hillary Clinton. On November 6, the same day as Rumsfeld's resignation, President Bush nominated Robert Gates former CIA director to replace him. He was confirmed by the Senate on December 6, 2006 by a vote of 95 - 2. The two senators voting against him were Bunning and Santorum. Senate hearings Gonzales's hearings began on January 6, 2005. During the hearings, the main opposition to Gonzales's nomination came from those who accused him of giving advice to President Bush that led to abuse of prisoners in U.S. custody, and that he condoned torture as an interrogation tactic. Gonzales denied these charges. Democrats, unable to block Gonzales' confirmation by vote threatened to filibuster; however, they retracted the threat within a week. They were successful in delaying the vote until after the President's State of the Union Address on February 2. Rice's hearing began on January 19. During Rice's nine- hour-long interrogation,