As President George W. Bush returned the focus to personal investment accounts on Wednesday, Tom DeLay, the House majority leader, said he did not consider them an essential part of a Social Security reform package.

The comments suggest that the president has some way to go in his search for a formula that can secure bipartisan support, as lawmakers from both parties rule certain proposals out and others essential. “The more people who own assets, the better off America is,” Mr Bush told the Latino Small Business Economic Conference, meeting in Washington. “I reject this notion that the investor class is limited to only a certain kind of person.”