Several alternative approaches have been suggested both inside and outside the Justice Department, the officials said. One possible scenario is that Ashcroft would recuse himself from the case once James Comey, the federal prosecutor in Manhattan, takes over as deputy attorney general in either an acting or permanent basis.
Bush said earlier this month that he intends to appoint Comey as the deputy attorney general. Comey brings established prosecutorial credentials to the job.
If Comey took charge it would avoid the time-consuming prospect of appointing a special counsel who would then have semi-independence to probe the case, but would still be answerable to the attorney general.
Ashcroft is aware of the political sensitivity of the case, and aides said he has worked hard to ensure an aggressive investigation.
After a news report indicated that the FBI would move cautiously because of the intense scrutiny, an angry Ashcroft had an aide call the FBI immediately to let officials there know that that would not be the case, a Justice Department adviser said.
"He wants to make certain we're moving with all appropriate dispatch," the advisor said.
Under fire
Ashcroft and Alberto Gonzales, the White House counsel, have also been under fire for their initial handling of the case. The Justice Department allowed the White House to wait overnight on Sept. 28 before sending an electronic message ordering White House employees not to destroy records related to the leak.
Ashley Snee, a spokesman for Gonzales, said that he believed the delay was acceptable because no one in the White House had any idea there was an investigation.
But The New York Times and The Washington Post had reported the day before that the CIA had forwarded the matter to the Justice Department for possible investigation.
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