PUBLIC MARKS with tags president & new

In a special televised address last night, President Bush addressed the nation on the immigration crisis. Unless a total indifference to the wishes of the American people can be counted as a kind of political boldness, anyone hoping for a bold new approach from the White House last night on immigration was likely disappointed. The president is in bad shape. His approval rating with voters is approaching Saddam Hussein territory—his handling of the immigration issue a major reason for the plummet.

President Bush has lost his momentum, Americans' support for the Iraq war is dwindling, and opposition to Bush policies is hardening. That's according to a recent New York Times/CBS News poll being covered as if it were a real news story.

Critics of the Bush administration have promoted video of an Aug. 28, 2005, teleconference between emergency management officials and the president as proof that the White House was warned that levees around New Orleans would likely fail against Hurricane Katrina. But a closer examination of the recording and transcript shows no mention that the Crescent City's levees would be breached.