Let's take a minute and look at the facts. Depending on which poll you look at, President Bush's approval rating is somewhere around 38%. Only 29% of people think Harriet Miers is qualified for the SCOTUS. Among African Americans, Bush's approval rating is 2%. 98% think he's doing a poor job. That's an incredible figure. 28% of people think the country is headed in the right direction.

Nearly three out of every four people think we're not. What is happening?

You can read up on various polls below (the first link gives the most comprehensive look)

PRESIDENT BUSH -- Overall Job Rating in recent news media/nonpartisan national polls

Bush approval dips below 40 percent

Poll: Americans Favor Bush's Impeachment If He Lied about Iraq

A Polling Free-Fall Among Blacks

My gut tells me if Patrick Fitzgerald comes out with any serious indictments these numbers will only go lower.

(The following is cross-posted at Progressive Politics, Populist Voices)

Today was an interesting day for White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan. He was grilled with questions on a scripted video conference between President Bush and some troops in Iraq, said that reporter Helen Thomas opposed the war on terrorism, and was prodded with questions on Miers.

Read on...

Q Scott, why did the administration feel it was necessary to coach the soldiers that the President talked to this morning in Iraq?

MR. McCLELLAN: I'm sorry, I don't know what you're suggesting.

Q Well, they discussed the questions ahead of time. They were told exactly what the President would ask, and they were coached, in terms of who would answer what question, and how they would pass the microphone.

MR. McCLELLAN: I'm sorry, are you suggesting that what our troops were saying was not sincere, or what they said was not their own thoughts?

Q Nothing at all. I'm just asking why it was necessary to coach them.

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, in terms of the event earlier today, the event was set up to highlight an important milestone in Iraq's history, and to give the President an opportunity to, once again, express our appreciation for all that our troops are doing when it comes to defending freedom, and their courage and their sacrifice. And this is a satellite feed, as you are aware, and there are always technological challenges involved when you're talking with troops on a satellite feed like this. And I think that we worked very closely with the Department of Defense to coordinate this event. And I think all they were doing was talking to the troops and letting them know what to expect.

Q But we asked you specifically this morning if there would be any screening of questions or if they were being told in any way what they should say or do, and you indicated no.

MR. McCLELLAN: I don't think that's what the question was earlier today. I think the question earlier today was asking if they could ask whatever they want, and I said, of course, the President was -- and you saw --

Q And I asked if they were pre-screened.

MR. McCLELLAN: You saw earlier today the President was trying to engage in a back-and-forth with the troops. And I think it was very powerful what Lieutenant Murphy was saying at the end of that conversation, when he was talking about what was going on in January, how the American troops and coalition forces were in the lead when it came to providing security for the upcoming election, an election where more than eight million Iraqis showed up and voted. It was a great success. And he talked about how this time, when we had the preparations for the upcoming referendum this Saturday, you have Iraqi forces that are in the lead, and the Iraqi forces are the ones that are doing the planning and preparing and taking the lead to provide for their own security as they get ready to cast their ballots again.

Q But I also asked this morning, were they being told by their commanders what to say or what to do, and you indicated, no. Was there any prescreening of --

MR. McCLELLAN: I'm not aware of any such -- any such activities that were being undertaken. We coordinated closely with the Department of Defense. You can ask if there was any additional things that they did. But we work very closely with them to coordinate these events, and the troops can ask the President whatever they want. They've always been welcome to do that.

Here's the exchange with reporter Helen Thomas

Q What does the President mean by "total victory" -- that we will never leave Iraq until we have "total victory"? What does that mean?

MR. McCLELLAN: Free and democratic Iraq in the heart of the Middle East, because a free and democratic Iraq in the heart of the Middle East will be a major blow to the ambitions --

Q If they ask us to leave, then we'll leave?

MR. McCLELLAN: I'm trying to respond. A free and democratic Iraq in the heart of the broader Middle East will be a major blow to the ambitions of al Qaeda and their terrorist associates. They want to establish or impose their rule over the broader Middle East -- we saw that in the Zawahiri letter that was released earlier this week by the intelligence community.

Q They also know we invaded Iraq.

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, Helen, the President recognizes that we are engaged in a global war on terrorism. And when you're engaged in a war, it's not always pleasant, and it's certainly a last resort. But when you engage in a war, you take the fight to the enemy, you go on the offense. And that's exactly what we are doing. We are fighting them there so that we don't have to fight them here. September 11th taught us --

Q It has nothing to do with -- Iraq had nothing to do with 9/11.

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, you have a very different view of the war on terrorism, and I'm sure you're opposed to the broader war on terrorism. The President recognizes this requires a comprehensive strategy, and that this is a broad war, that it is not a law enforcement matter.

Terry.

Q On what basis do you say Helen is opposed to the broader war on terrorism?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, she certainly expressed her concerns about Afghanistan and Iraq and going into those two countries. I think I can go back and pull up her comments over the course of the past couple of years.

Q And speak for her, which is odd.

MR. McCLELLAN: No, I said she may be, because certainly if you look at her comments over the course of the past couple of years, she's expressed her concerns --

Q I'm opposed to preemptive war, unprovoked preemptive war.

MR. McCLELLAN: -- she's expressed her concerns.

Oh, and they're not finished with that sham of a video conference...

Q All right. Let me get back to the President's encounter with the troops, if I can. You said that the choreography of this was because of a technological challenge involved in the satellite feed. Well, what does that mean?

MR. McCLELLAN: No, I'm just saying that there -- you have delays and things like that when you have a satellite feed, and so, obviously, there's going to be some coordination going on when you're setting up an event like this.

Q So the choreography --

MR. McCLELLAN: I think you're missing the broader point of what this event was about. And what this event was about was to highlight an important milestone in the history of Iraq: that is the upcoming referendum. The Iraqi people are going to be able to freely express themselves this weekend, once again, as they cast their vote for the constitution that was drafted by their elected leadership. And that was the point of the event. It was also an opportunity for the President to continue expressing the appreciation of the entire nation for the courage and sacrifice of our men and women in uniform. We're greatly appreciative for all that they're doing. And these were troops that are on the ground in Iraq. They know firsthand what is going on. And so the President wanted to talk about some important topics that are very important to all Americans, and that is the security situation in Iraq, as well as the upcoming referendum that the Iraqi people will be participating in this weekend. In fact, today, my understanding is that some of the Iraqi citizens that are in hospitals began casting their ballots already.

Q So you're saying this was not a staged conversation for PR purposes?

MR. McCLELLAN: This is an event where there's coordination that goes on and we work closely with the Department of Defense. They worked to pull together some troops for the President to visit with and highlight important topics that are going on right now on the ground in Iraq. The President is going to continue speaking out about what we're working to achieve in Iraq and he's going to continue talking about the vital mission that we're working to achieve there. The stakes are high in Iraq. This is right up there at the top of our list of priorities. As the President said in the remarks, his most solemn duty and the most solemn duty of our men and women in uniform, like those he was talking to, is the safety and security of the American people.

I just don't know if some are suggesting that what our troops were saying was not their own thoughts, because it clearly was.

Q Now, we all saw the event, so without getting into what the President said and what the troops said, can you just talk specifically to the choreography? Did the soldiers know what questions they would be asking? Did they --

MR. McCLELLAN: No, I really can't, because we coordinate this with the Department of Defense, and you might want to direct questions to the Department of Defense, because when we do these events -- we appreciate all the help that they provide -- the Department of Defense takes the lead in terms of pulling some troops together so that we can do events like this.

Q So you, personally, do not know if those soldiers rehearsed their answers before they were on air, live?

MR. McCLELLAN: Well, my understanding is that someone from the Department of Defense was talking to them ahead of time. But I don't know -- I was with the President, so --

Q Can you find out what the answer is?

And Helen Thomas isn't finished either...

MR. McCLELLAN: Yes, I think you might want to talk to the Department of Defense. Like I said, they're kind of the point person in terms of coordinating this with our troops. And we appreciate all that they do to help coordinate an event like this. But I think what the American people heard was some very important information from our men and women in uniform. These are men and women who are on the ground in Iraq, and I think we can get caught up in some of these side issues -- because that's all this is -- but let's talk about what was most important. What's important is that the Iraqi people are going to the polls this weekend, and they're going to vote on a constitution in a free Iraq. Just three years ago, the Iraqi people were under a brutal, oppressive dictator, a dictator that killed thousands and thousands of people.

Q How many have we killed?

MR. McCLELLAN: We've liberated 25 million, both in Iraq and in Afghanistan.

Q How many have we killed?

Q When the prosecutor tells somebody --

MR. McCLELLAN: Helen -- I'm sorry, Bob, I just can't let this go -- our men and women in uniform go out of their way not to target innocent civilians. They go out of their way to target those who are enemies and to bring them to justice. They are making the world safer for our children and grandchildren.

and finally Ms. Miers...

Q Scott, could you give us maybe three examples of lawsuits or cases that Harriet Miers was involved in, that were, themselves, trailblazing in some way?

MR. McCLELLAN: That were, themselves, trailblazing?

Q Yes, that were trailblazing. We're told she's a trailblazer. I'd like to
know --

MR. McCLELLAN: Yes. I don't think I said it in that context.

Q But has any of the law that she's been involved in been trailblazing?

MR. McCLELLAN: You might want to go and do a Westlaw review, and you can pull up the information for yourself. But she has handled complex issues when it comes to her litigation experience. Harriet Miers is someone that is exceptionally well-qualified to serve on our nation's highest court. ...blah...blah...(part cut out for space) And she is well-versed in constitutional law. You have to be when you serve at the highest levels of government. She has served as the President's General Counsel, which she is doing right now; as his Deputy Chief of Staff; and as Staff Secretary. And those are three of the highest positions within the White House. And I would submit to you that there are very few lawyers, men or women, who have that kind of experience at that level. And I would also -- I'd also, because it seems to me that you're trying to suggest that maybe she's not experienced. I would encourage you --

Q She's 60 years old, I'm sure she's very experienced.

MR. McCLELLAN: Thirty years of legal experience. She is someone of great legal ability. I would encourage you to go and look back over the last 70 years of Supreme Court justices that have been confirmed, and then look at her qualifications and her record, because her qualifications and record clearly show she is exceptionally well-qualified to serve on our nation's highest Court. The experience that she has is equal to, or greater than many of those who have already been confirmed to the United States Supreme Court over the course of the last 70 years. One in three justices serving on the Supreme Court over that time period did not come from the court.

You can watch both videos (CNN on stage press conference and Scott McClellan vs. Helen Thomas) here. I'm hosting the videos on my other website because they mess up my blog's format.

And that folks is a White House without any offense left. They're all defense, and it's not looking so good. Even Bill O'Reilly's saying it. I'd suggest they go back, read a little more Orwell, and brush up on their Doublespeak. You can find the entire transcript from today's press briefing below.

Press Briefing by Scott McClellan

Peace,
Chris

"I wish the world was run by love, and absolutely nothing more."