Certified but Incomplete

Some highlights from an article by the New York Times Editorial Desk on November 27,2000.


"By hailing the certification of Florida's ballots as the last word on the presidential election and naming a transition director and chief of staff, Gov. George W. Bush reached boldly for the mantle of president-elect. Unfortunately, he is also trying to leapfrog the nation past the important pending legal challenges to that state's incompletely counted vote. In light of the events since Nov. 7, the last word ought to be delivered by the courts that will hear Vice President Al Gore's contests of the results and, more important, by a United States Supreme Court that is hearing arguments about the election at Mr. Bush's request."

"Both the Florida courts and the United States Supreme Court can finish their work in a little over a week. They can give Americans of both parties a higher level of confidence in the ballot count. That, in turn, would allow either Mr. Bush or Mr. Gore to take office on a sounder basis. Both candidates should be looking to the broader issue of legitimacy instead of grasping for short-term advantage."

"It was, of course, no surprise that Florida's secretary of state, Katherine Harris, an eager partisan who worked for the Bush campaign, would quickly certify a result that showed Mr. Bush in the lead. But it was disappointing to see the Texas Governor embrace that disputed certification and call upon Mr. Gore to drop his plan to contest the Florida results. The courts need to look at this count and tell the nation whether it represents the official end point of the election. Once the courts have spoken, the time for argument will be over."

"This is clearly not the time for Florida's restive, Republican-led Legislature to meddle with the election. The surest way to erode public trust is for the Florida Legislature and Florida's Republican governor, Jeb Bush, to try to override the decisions of the Florida courts."

"The United States Supreme Court can do its part to conclude this national drama on an authoritative note by allowing television coverage of the arguments before the court on Friday. The justices have a longstanding aversion to television, but they should make an exception for this case because of the need to clear up the disputed count certified in Florida last night."

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