But Morsi also could count on Mohamed Fahmy, 23, a communications student who fumed as he watched thousands of anti-Morsi protesters in Tahrir Square. He said he was outraged at Egyptians who tried to thwart Morsi’s efforts to govern.

"Those people want a president every day. They need someone like (ousted Egyptian President Hosni) Mubarak. Those people need a whip," Fahmy said. "We should give him a chance. They want everything to change overnight."

Fahmy believes that if people don’t like what Morsi is doing, they will have their chance – the next time the country elects a president.

Opponents say Morsi’s decree was to make certain that the courts could not dissolve the Muslim Brotherhood-dominated constitutional assembly and the Shura Council, the upper house of Parliament.

If those were his goals, then the agreement with the judges was definitely a Morsi victory.

Under the agreement, no court may dissolve the constituent assembly or the upper house of Parliament, according to Ali’s announcement.

The agreement also said that none of Morsi’s executive orders issued since June 30, 2012, can be abrogated by the courts, and “all suits launched against them are hereby dismissed.”

The constituent assembly also was granted an extra two months to finish drafting the constitution, a key Morsi position. The president was also given authority to “take any steps he feels necessary to preserve the revolution, or national unity, or the country’s security.”

One of the agreement’s most controversial points provides for the reinvestigation of “all officials of the Mubarak regime who were implicated in violence against protesters.” That is certain to mean new trials against many Mubarak security officials who were acquitted in recent months.

Special correspondent Amina Ismail in Cairo contributed to this report.