What would happen if the President held a press conference (which, by the way, are becoming more and more regular), and he repeatedly spoke of working with the new Congress, agreed in principle to an increase in the minimum wage, admitted that his Iraq policy was not successful and committed to changing tactics through a calm and studied process?

Would the headlines read?

Bush Extends Hand Across the Aisle to Democrats in Congress.

Bush Admits Mistakes in Iraq, Listening to All Voices in Attempt to Craft Successful Policy.

Citing Strong Economy, President Agrees to Minimum Wage Increase and Commits to Tax Policy to Promote Continued Growth.

Or how about this one?

President Bush Stalwart on Iraq Despite Setbacks.

Well, he did give a press conference (transcript here) in which he did all of the things cited above. And here are the real headlines:

Washington Post: President Confronts Dissent on Troop Levels: Bush Indicates Military Won't Dictate Numbers; Top General to Retire.

Time Magazine: Bush and the Generals: A Growing Split?: In his press conference, the President said he would "listen" to his commanders. But they're starting to talk back on Iraq.

Columnist Margaret Carlson for Bloomberg News: US Losing Sleep Over Aimless Bush.

Actually, two national newspapers not known for objectivity when it comes to George Bush actually did very well in capturing the import of the moment:

LA Times: Bush acknowledges 'difficult year' in Iraq: President acknowledges sectarian violence but says victory is possible.

NYT: Bush Says Victory in Iraq Is Still Possible.

Note on NYT: the above headline and story have disappeared. The front page video story as of now: General [John Abizaid] Opposes Adding to Forces (which conforms better to the storyline of the day). Although a complete viewing of the Abizaid video yields the commanding general much more in agreement with the President's goals than the headline would suggest.