Zeev's Turnips Patch-No Politics (ZEEV)

[Bearmove]

3:54PM President Bush to speak tonight at 8pm EST : President Bush will deliver a prime-time speech tonight at 8 PM ET detailing his strategy for handing over power to Iraqis at the end of June. Bush is also expected to detail plans for a new U.N. Security Council resolution that the U.S. hopes will encourage other countries to commit troops to the post-occupation effort. Presidential historian Doug Brinkley says the stakes are enormous for Bush. With his public standing "heading into a downward spiral, it is imperative that the president appeal directly to the American public. It's one of those moments historians will look at decades from now," he added. According to Strafor.com, "There is no question that this is the single most important speech in George W. Bush's presidency. Its importance will rest not in his soaring rhetoric, nor in the sincerity of his delivery, but rather in the substance of what he says. More significant, it is not about convincing anyone that he is on the right course -- it is in the strategy he announces and whether it works".