USTIN, Texas - George W. Bush retreated to the solitude of his ranch yesterday, away from the noisy demonstrators and media stakeouts at the Texas capital, to ponder lists of potential Cabinet appointees and top transition staff.
The Bush transition team could be fleshed out by the end of the week, aides said, but an announcement of Cabinet appointments will probably not come until early next week, after the US Supreme Court hears Bush's challenge to the recounts of Florida's disputed presidential election.
Bush plans to spend this weekend at the ranch, where he will meet with running mate Dick Cheney, and Andrew H. Card, whom Bush has designated to be White House chief of staff, to talk about appointees.
The marquee announcements of Colin L. Powell as secretary of state and Condoleezza Rice as national security adviser will come first, Republican insiders say, because the secretary's job is the senior Cabinet post.
The decision to delay that announcement is holding up further announcements, including nominees for defense secretary, attorney general, and director of the Central Intelligence Agency, the GOP aides say.
''You don't want to announce the attorney general or some of these other posts until you'' roll out the foreign policy team, said one Republican aide.
After meeting with Bush, Card told reporters that the Texas governor hopes to name some Democrats to top administration posts. Appointing Democrats would reflect Bush's pledge to build a less partisan administration, while also soothing passions raised by the continuing election fight between Bush and Vice President Al Gore.
Card refused to comment on speculations that Sam Nunn, former US senator of Georgia, was being considered for defense secretary. Among other Democrats said to be under consideration is former US Representative Lee Hamilton of Indiana, an international affairs authority, being weighed for the CIA job.
One Atlantan close to Nunn discounted the possibility of Nunn's appointment, saying the former longtime legislator was happy and prospering in a local law firm. A GOP insider said Bush may skip national Democratic figures altogether, instead appointing a Democratic lawmaker from Texas or a local entrepreneur as education secretary.
Among the most likely choices for attorney general, say several people in touch with the Bush team, are fellow Republican governors: Frank Keating of Oklahoma and Marc Racicot of Montana. Keating, a former FBI agent, received national acclaim for his handling of the bombing in Oklahoma City. Racicot, a former Army lawyer, has played a lead role in representing the campaign in the election fight.
''He's done a great job,'' said one Bush aide.
Bush confidants said they had not heard any new discussion about a job for Governor Paul Cellucci of Massachusetts, a close friend of Card and the Bush family. Cellucci is said to be interested in a Cabinet post or perhaps the ambassadorship to Italy.
Steve Goldsmith, a former mayor of Indianapolis who has been serving as a domestic policy adviser, is also expected to get a domestic post, perhaps housing secretary.
The name game came as Bush and his team began to shed some of the tentativeness that followed Sunday's certification of Florida's vote. Bush is still eschewing the title ''president-elect'' in favor of ''governor,'' but the retreat to the ranch to cement transition plans, as well as a swift campaign response to Gore's request for more time to recount Florida's vote, signaled a more aggressive posture.
The campaign has been encouraged by two recent public opinion polls showing eroding support for Gore, even among Democrats who voted for him.
Speaking at the vice president's residence in Washington, Gore asked a state court to oversee a rapid manual recount of thousands of ballots.
He asked for ''seven days, starting [today], for a full and accurate count of all the votes,'' Gore said. ''Once we have that full and accurate count of the ballots cast, then we will know who our next president is and our country can move forward.''
Several hours later, reporters were summoned to Bush's campaign headquarters, where his chief spokeswoman, Karen P. Hughes, offered a tart reply.
''We have previously talked about attempts to change the rules in the middle of the game. Now, regrettably, it appears that the vice president wants to go back and change the rules after the counting is over,'' Hughes said.
Bush met with Card and Clay Johnson, his gubernatorial chief of staff and choice to be executive director of the transition effort at the Capitol yesterday. At day's end, Bush headed for his ranch with his wife, Laura. Card, Cheney, and his wife, Lynne, were expected by the end of the week.
Hughes said that transition work has been difficult in Austin, where the Governor's Mansion is staked out by reporters and Bush cannot enter or leave the Capitol without facing demonstrators or a media horde. Bush's 1,600-acre ranch in Crawford is isolated, with the small town lacking even a single hotel.
''I think that it's a tranquil place where it's easy to do some thinking and reflecting,'' Hughes said. ''As those of you who've been parked outside across the street from the Mansion know, the Mansion has been somewhat hectic in recent days, with very enthusiastic crowds gathered around, which is great, except for when you're inside trying to think or work.''
The first task before the Bush team is appointing a team to help Cheney and Johnson manage the transition. Bush aides said appointees would probably be named tomorrow or Friday.
Another expected transition appointment is that of Brian Montgomery as executive director of the inaugural committee. Montgomery, a former aide to President Bush who headed the ''advance'' team that set up the governor's campaign appearances, did not return a call seeking comment.
Also confronting the transition team is the need for money. The General Services Administration, which has reserved offices and $5.3 million for the president-elect, is withholding those funds until Gore and Bush settle their legal disputes.
Cheney announced Monday the campaign would establish a privately funded operation in the interim. There was a national conference call among Republican supporters yesterday to raise the necessary money. Aides were eyeing an office in McLean, Va., with the aim of occupying it by early next week.
