The banner hanging over President George W. Bush read united to victory. But as Republican

s listened to Bush slog(艰难行进) through his familiar pep talk(鼓舞士气的讲话) last Thursday night, the party faithfully knew they were anything but united. Over the last year, they ejected a majority leader, quarreled over morality and spending, and openly criticized the president on Iraq, port security and a Supreme Court pick.

For five years nobody needed to explain the word "united" to Republicans; it was their biggest strength. The president handed his agenda to Congress and the party leaders delivered the votes. They twisted the arms of small-government conservatives to pass education reforms and Medicare drug benefits. They held their ranks together even as the Iraq occupation was losing supports in 2004. And they picked up seats in two election cycles. But now that company has fallen apart. Members of Congress, tired of being taken for granted by a bossy White House, have lost faith in the president's politican touch.

The stress is starting to show. Republicans are beginning to look and sound like their own caricature(漫画)of the Democrats: disorganized, off message and unsure of their identity. Fearful of defeat in November, GOP candidates are uncertain how to pull themselves together in the eight months left before the elections. The toughest question: whether to run, as they have in the past, as Bush Republicans, or to push the, president out of their campaigns. "What I've tried to tell people is that a political storm is gathering, and if we don't do something to stop it, we'll be in the minority a year from now," says Rep. Ray La Hood from Illinois. "But some people still don't get it."

The president won't have an easy time persuading Republicans to stick with him. Second-term presidents often suffer a six-year slump, losing seats for their party at this point. Bush has actually been lucky in one respect. He held his party together longer than most two-term presidents. Johnson kept control for just eight months until he suffered defeat on the issue of home rule for the District of Columbia in 1965, when Democrats took him on—and won.

Some candidates are happy to stand beside Bush, as long as nobody actually sees them together. Locked in a tight race for re-election, Sen. Mike DeWine chose not to accompany Bush on one trip to his home state of Ohio last month. A week later he attended a private fund-raiser with the president in Cincinnati—out of sight of photographers and reporters.

While listening to Bush's pep talk, the Republicans______.

A．were inspired by the president to hold together

B．lost interest in the frequently heard content

C．disagreed with the president on his slogan

D．felt impatient with the slow speech