By Anne E. Kornblut, Globe Staff, 12/13/2000

AUSTIN, Texas - Giving only a muted response to a US Supreme Court decision that moved the election dramatically closer to an end, a senior adviser described George W. Bush as "very pleased and gratified" with the ruling last night, stopping short of claiming victory in brief public remarks.

But privately, Bush aides said they were ecstatic. And for the first time in more than a month, senior supporters of Al Gore strongly urged him to step aside, saying he had exhausted all his legal options after a bitter monthlong fight. Even as Gore lawyers scrambled to find an opening amid a thicket of conflicting legal opinions, Democratic National Committee chairman Ed Rendell said the vice president "should act now and concede."

"It sounds like we lost," a lawyer for Gore, W. Dexter Douglass, said less than an hour after the decision was announced. "What else can we do? It means we can't do the recount."

Senator Robert Torricelli of New Jersey, a Democrat, was also among the first to call for Gore's concession, saying his candidacy had run its course.

As the bleak comments from Democrats crescendoed late into last night, the widespread support in his party that Gore had enjoyed was plainly and rapidly evaporating in the wake of the Supreme Court decision. Gore did not make an appearance after the ruling was released; instead, campaign chairman William Daley issued a statement saying he would "address the court's decision in full detail" before taking the next step.

The vice president had pinned his last hopes on the Supreme Court ruling, following a series of twists that seemed to be turning in his favor as recently as Friday, when the Florida Supreme Court ordered a manual ballot recount in the state. Even after US justices stepped in to suspend the recount Saturday, Gore took the blow in stride, saying he believed the highest court would reconsider after hearing arguments from his legal team.

But that was apparently not the case. Seven justices said there were constitutional problems with the manual recount. But a narrow majority of the court said there was no appropriate remedy, effectively ending hope of a recount.

"It is obvious that the recount cannot be conducted in compliance with the requirements of equal protection and due process without substantial additional work," the court's unsigned opinion said.

As fragments of the ruling were read aloud on national television, cheers erupted inside Bush campaign headquarters. Although the decision was complex enough to confound legal experts nationwide, and one TV network initially said it appeared to favor Gore, a picture of a Bush victory began to emerge, bringing a wave of relief to Republican aides who had been bracing for a statewide manual recount.

Asked what the decision meant just minutes after the news broke, one Bush associate said cautiously, "Good - I think."

"It depends which network you're watching, but from what I gather, they reversed the Florida Supreme Court, gave it back for technical revisions with no possibility for a recount," he said. "That means it's over."

Bush, who had once planned an extravagant celebration and a full-blown victory speech, is now expected to give a toned-down version that focuses on unifying the nation, if, in fact, he prevails. Aides have said he hoped to do so only after hearing Gore's plans.

Bush made no public remarks after watching events unfold inside the governor's mansion. But in a conversation with the head of his legal team in Florida, former secretary of state James A. Baker III, Bush said he was pleased with the ruling. Shortly afterward, Baker conveyed those sentiments to reporters in a short statement.

"They are of course very pleased and gratified that seven justices of the United States Supreme Court agreed that there were constitutional problems with the recount ordered by the Florida Supreme Court," Baker said in a news conference televised live from Tallahassee. "They once again wanted me to express their appreciation to the fine legal team and the hundreds of volunteers who have worked here in Florida on their behalf for the last 35 days. This has been a long and arduous process for everyone on both sides."

Baker then walked away from the podium, declining to answer a question about whether the election was over.

Democrats, however, were less hesitant in their remarks. In a live television appearance less than an hour after the ruling, US Senator Robert Torricelli, a New Jersey Democrat, said it was clear the election was over, calling on Gore to concede immediately. Rendell agreed, although he said the loss was not Gore's fault.

"It's very frustrating for us, because I think every effort should have been made to count the votes in Florida," he said.