Trying to Change the Subject

President Bush tonight will try to change the subject -- and will fail.

That's the consensus of the Washington press corps, which is nearly unanimous today in describing a badly weakened president desperate to boost his standing by talking about anything but Iraq.

Mark Silva writes in the Chicago Tribune: "Planning a State of the Union address Tuesday night heavy on health care, energy and education, President Bush will attempt to get beyond a raging debate over the war in Iraq as he faces a new Democratic-controlled Congress for the first time.

"Yet, with mounting U.S. casualties in Iraq and a majority of Americans voicing disapproval with the nation's direction, criticism is likely to remain fixed on Bush's war policy while congressional leaders attempt to swiftly discredit some of his new domestic initiatives, such as a tax deduction for health insurance to help more people obtain coverage."

Jim Rutenberg and Robert Pear write in the New York Times: "Carrying some of the worst public approval ratings of any president in a generation, President Bush is heading into his State of the Union address on Tuesday night seeking to revitalize his domestic agenda but facing stiff resistance over the initiatives the White House has previewed so far."

White House counselor Dan Bartlett tells the Times that "a major theme of the address would be that 'divided government does not mean we cannot govern.'

"But the initial response to Mr. Bush's health care plans has not been positive, on Capitol Hill or among constituencies including employers and labor unions. And with the president's political authority diminished and the new Democratic majority in Congress emboldened, the fate of his domestic agenda, and his ability to forge compromises on his terms, is in question."

Ron Hutcheson writes for McClatchy Newspapers: "Facing a hostile Congress and a skeptical public, President Bush will use his State of the Union speech Tuesday to try to leverage his rapidly diminishing clout behind a series of new proposals. . . .

"But he's never gone to Capitol Hill under such difficult circumstances, and he's so weak politically that his effort to set the national agenda is unlikely to succeed, for Democrats didn't win power to follow his lead."

Susan Milligan writes in the Boston Globe that "while Bush's rhetoric appears more conciliatory now that he faces a Democratic-controlled Congress for the first time in his tenure, the president has shown no sign of compromising on the substance of his domestic or foreign policy goals, according to lawmakers in both parties who have had discussions with the White House."

Linda Feldmann writes in the Christian Science Monitor: "When President Bush takes to the airwaves Tuesday night to deliver his sixth State of the Union address, the metamessage of the evening will be: 'I am still relevant.'"

Katie Couric asked Jim Axelrod last night on the CBS Evening News: "Is the president going to try to use the State of the Union speech to change the subject, or will he stay focused on Iraq?"