Obama aides dismiss shake-up talk but enlist help

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Aides to President Barack Obama on Sunday played down prospects for a major shake-up of his agenda, despite a shocking election setback last week for his Democratic party.

But in an indication Obama was absorbing lessons from the upset Republican victory for U.S. Senate in Massachusetts, he turned to a trusted outside adviser for help in guiding the party''s strategy in congressional elections in November.

David Plouffe, Obama''s 2008 campaign manager, was known for keeping the political operation on an even keel by admonishing aides and supporters against "bed-wetting," or panicking in times of trouble.

Plouffe will work with both the White House and congressional Democrats, who worry more losses could be in store for them in November.

Obama, who is taking a populist turn that includes a vow to crack down on Wall Street excesses, is to deliver his State of the Union address to Congress on Wednesday. Analysts will be looking closely at that speech for any sign of a reframing of his agenda.

"He is going to fight for what he''s always been fighting for," White House adviser Valerie Jarrett told NBC''s "Meet the Press" program. "We''re not hitting a reset button at all."

While the White House has said Obama won''t gloss over the Massachusetts setback in his speech, Jarrett and other aides said Obama was sticking to priorities such as seeking to overhaul the healthcare system, calling for targeted actions to spur job growth and putting new curbs on Wall Street.

The election of Republican Scott Brown to be a U.S. senator from Massachusetts means Democrats will no longer have a 60-vote supermajority in the chamber. As a result, Democrats will not be able to hold off Republican procedural maneuvers designed to block legislation, such as Obama''s proposed healthcare plan.

Analysts have speculated that Obama and the Democrats will be forced to scale back the healthcare plan and possibly delay other agenda items, such as a proposal for caps on carbon emissions as part of the U.S. fight against global warming.

GAUGING THE CLIMATE FOR HEALTHCARE

Obama''s aides said he has no intention of abandoning the effort to pass a healthcare bill.

"What he''s doing and what happened over the course of the weekend, is there''s been a series of phone calls and conversations to try to see ... what the climate is," Jarrett said. "What is the art of the possible?"