"It's important that the American people be aware both of his consultation and his level of concern about getting it right," Snow said.

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More than 2,900 US military members have died in Iraq. The war has weighed down the Bush presidency and helped shift control of Congress to the Democrats, who have long accused Bush of being stubborn and isolated.

The administration has rejected calls for troop withdrawals until Iraq can govern and defend itself, warning that retreat could create a haven for terrorists and kill a fledgling democracy.

"I don't think he's looking for an easy answer. He's looking for the right answer. And the right answer isn't one person's idea," said Republican strategist Ron Kaufman, who worked in the White House under Bush's father.

"If some retired general or some historian can add to the final solution, then he's doing the right thing," Kaufman said.

At the State Department, Bush met with Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and her senior advisers on Iraq, and with diplomats who serve as leaders of US joint civilian-military units called provincial reconstruction teams.

The US ambassador, Zalmay Khalilzad, participated by videoconference. "It was a good give and take," State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said. "The president had questions throughout the entire set of briefings."

Afterward, Bush delivered a statement but took no questions in the Treaty Room, with Rice and Vice President Dick Cheney standing behind him. Looming behind them all were portraits of two former secretaries of state, James A. Baker III and Lawrence Eagleburger - both members of a bipartisan commission that has bluntly told Bush his Iraq policy is not working.

Bush's public remarks echoed his previous statements and gave no indication of any change of strategy.

Later, he sought advice from Stephen Biddle of the Council of Foreign Relations, Eliot Cohen of the School of Advanced International Studies and three retired Army generals: Wayne Downing, Jack Keane and Barry McCaffrey.

Snow said Bush hoped to be able to announce his decisions by Christmas but that the timing could slip. "It's something that we would like to see, but I'm not going to promise it," Snow said.

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