The Senate's failure to move forward on a bill to strengthen U.S. computer defenses leaves little chance that Congress can find a compromise this year, as lawmakers turn their attention to November's election.

The chamber's Democratic leadership failed yesterday to get the 60 votes needed to force a final vote on the cybersecurity measure before the Senate leaves this week for an August recess. The vote was 52-46, largely along party lines, as most Republicans opposed a bill their leaders called a burden for businesses.

“As a practical matter, it's probably dead,” Stewart Baker, a former assistant secretary for policy at the Department of Homeland Security, said in an interview. “There's some people hoping against hope to revive it, but given the calendar and the difficulty of the issues, it would be almost impossible.”