Republicans look to a future without Bush

While praising Bush's leadership, they condemned runaway government spending, rising debt and expanding bureaucracies -- which have grown under Bush and added to a flood of political difficulties that have sent his approval ratings plummeting.

The conference offered a glimpse of the future for a party contemplating life after Bush. With November's congressional election looming and approval ratings skidding for Bush and the Republican-led Congress, attendees said the party had strayed from its core principles of limited government, fiscal responsibility and conservative social values.