Yesterday, I asked if the Bush agenda is stalled and if so how much of that is directly tied to the Patrick Fitzgerald investigation?

A source who asked to remain anonymous because of their close ties to the White House tells The Buzz it is not the president's agenda itself that is lacking, but the means by which it is being conveyed, “The administration has caught the second-term curse. They are lacking an agenda that is on the offensive. Sure, they’ve had fits and starts, but they have lacked a plan to govern. And when you have a failure to govern, you feel it at the polls. This didn’t start with Hurricane Katrina. Things were going south in August. There is a growing disconnect. The second-term agenda has not hit it off with the American public.”

Nonetheless, this same source feels the situation is far from dire. “They need a forward-looking economic package that conservatives and Republicans in Congress can get behind. Time is on our side for cleaning up this mess. It’s going to be a lot of work. But the president’s political capital will not wean until early next summer even if this course doesn’t change. If you’re a member of Congress up for re-election that’s when the survival instincts kick in and you’ll do or say what you need to in order to win your campaign.”