Message: I Lead

President Bush goes before a disaffected nation tonight to reassert his leadership -- quite possibly by insisting repeatedly that he's a leader with an obligation to lead at a time that requires leadership.

"Lead" certainly was the word of the day at the White House yesterday.

After his Cabinet meeting, Bush told reporters: "I can't tell you how upbeat I am about our future, so long as we're willing to lead. . . .

"We talked about how to make sure this economy of ours stays the strongest economy in the world, and that we recognize we can't just sit back and hope for the best, that we've got to lead."

And at the mid-day press briefing, spokesman Scott McClellan was typically unsubtle.

"We are living in historic times and, as the President has said, we have a responsibility to lead. . . . It's important that we continue leading and acting to spread peace abroad and prosperity at home. The President is optimistic and confident about the path that we are on."

Didn't catch that?

"These are historic times that we are living in, these are challenging times. That's why we have an obligation to lead. . . .

"This is a President that believes we must lead and act."

Still a little unclear on the concept?

"Because of the times that we are living in, we must continue to lead and we must continue to act on the priorities that the American people care about."

Lead how?