Supremes Appear to Lean Against Bush

The justices sounded closely split, with the majority leaning against the administration's rigid stand.

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg said the detainees deserve a chance to plead their case. "They say our people are innocent. All we want is some process to determine whether they are innocent," she said.

Justice John Paul Stevens, David H. Souter and Stephen G. Breyer also objected to Olson's argument that only the president and his military commanders have the sole power to decide the fate of those men.

Justice Anthony M. Kennedy also noted that the habeas corpus law is broadly worded and gives all prisoners in U.S. custody a right to file a writ in the federal courts. Justice Sandra Day O'Connor also indicated that she thought the government's case went too far.

Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist and Justice Antonin Scalia sided with the government. They cited World War II-era cases that said "enemy aliens" had no right to have their claims heard in the courts. Justice Clarence Thomas is likely to join them.

Even if a liberal majority sides with the Guantanamo detainees, it is not clear they will win much. Ginsburg noted that if the government gave them a military hearing, that may suffice.

The court is likely to hand down a ruling in late June.