Things are getting ugly at the U.S. Supreme Court. In the weeks since the election, the justices have tried to conceal their internal differences about how to resolve the political brawl in Florida–speaking, at least publicly, with one voice. But last week those barely hidden divisions became all too visible. In its extraordinary Saturday ruling that ordered Florida to halt manual recounts, the court split 5-4, along conservative-liberal lines. As the justices prepared to hear arguments scheduled for Monday morning–warp speed for the court–the majority seemed to indicate that it was preparing to put an end to the recounts once and for all.

That may be good news for George W. Bush, but it would be terrible for the court. The justices, whose moral authority as a calm council of wise elders has survived many ideological battles, are now apparently as divided as the res…

Things are getting ugly at the U.S. Supreme Court. In the weeks since the election, the justices have tried to conceal their internal differences about how to resolve the political brawl in Florida–speaking, at least publicly, with one voice. But last week those barely hidden divisions became all too visible. In its extraordinary Saturday ruling that ordered Florida to halt manual recounts, the court split 5-4, along conservative-liberal lines. As the justices prepared to hear arguments sched