Bush Seeks to Steady Course

After weeks of political turmoil, capped by the indictment of a senior administration official, President Bush will try to give his second term a fresh start by naming a new conservative nominee to the Supreme Court and intensifying his drive to cut government spending, White House officials and other Republicans said.

But he appears to see little need for the wholesale housecleaning that previous administrations tried in times of upheaval to rebuild credibility, those officials said.

The administration's goal, they said, is to reassure its divided and demoralized conservative base, chalk up a few victories on Capitol Hill and set the stage for a more robust comeback next year after months of experiencing one misstep and setback after another.

But some supporters of the administration acknowledged that it was harder to get out of political trouble than into it and that with the leak investigation continuing, American troops still dying in Iraq and the Republican Party divided over a number of issues, the Bush strategy faces extraordinary challenges.