Frankfurter said that the court was overstepping its bounds in striking down the West Virginia law.

The Whitman administration contends that the court would be overstepping its authority by requiring full-day preschool programs.

State Senator Leonard Lance, the minority leader, said he thought the court was overstepping its bounds by ordering legislators to rewrite the law.

"I feel the court overstepped its bounds," Mr. Bush said.

He contended that the courts had overstepped their bounds and were usurping the role of the legislature.

In other words, the court has overstepped its bounds and contributed to the radicalization of Afghan politics in the process.

But the ruling drew a terse and somewhat critical response from Gov. George E. Pataki, who said the high court had overstepped its boundaries.

But, he said, if the commission's veto of the merger was indeed wrong, clearly the lower court did not overstep the mark by questioning the strength of the commission's evidence.

Last week the authority said it would appeal that order, arguing that the court is overstepping its bounds.