Governor George W. Bush's weekend call for the keys to the presidential transition offices in Washington has placed the Clinton administration in an uncomfortable and, experts say, unprecedented, situation.
Mr Bush said he would name his running mate, Mr Dick Cheney, to head his transition team, and the former transportation secretary, Mr Andrew Card, as his chief of staff. He urged them to begin working with administration officials right away.
Sources said the administration had two separate matters under consideration: first, whether the General Services Administration (GSA) should release $5.3 million in transition funds to Bush as well as the keys to two floors of office space in Washington.
A second, equally important, question is whether the next president can get his top personnel into the FBI clearance process - something that can take several months - so they can be nominated and put into place quickly. On Sunday night, the GSA answered the first question with a terse reply: no money or keys to the offices until the challenges are resolved.
"As long as both sides are still going to court, and both sides say they are, we believe that the outcome remains unclear," a spokeswoman, Ms Beth Newburger said. If the GSA sticks to that position, Bush officials might decide to move ahead anyway. One senior adviser to the Texas governor said the campaign was prepared to "raise private monies. . . and find private quarters" to begin the transition if need be.
"If the Clinton administration chooses that course, there are other options that we'll pursue," the official said on Sunday night. "If the administration wants to play politics and score points, that's entirely their prerogative." In defending its position, administration officials cited the 1963 Presidential Transition Effectiveness Act, which contains a clause saying "when the election is in doubt, the administrator must wait until it is clear".
Of at least equal importance in securing the money might be how quickly the Bush campaign can move key people through the clearance process so they can be confirmed by the Senate. It is unclear how much the administration would - or could legally - help. The question likely to be debated is whether "the administration can move forward to expedite the shortened transition".
"That may include expediting FBI vetting so that process begins," a Clinton administration official said, but there was no determination whether the administration legally can take names from one - or both - camps and have agencies do background checks before an official winner is declared.