Coming up in 15 minutes. Allah will have vid at Hot Air and I’ll have more to say after it starts. Stay tuned.

Rich Lowry thinks Bush will “help himself” with this appearance. Will it help Republicans? John McIntyre examines: “How Bad Will Iraq Hurt the GOP?”

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10:36am. “As the enemy shifts tactics, we are shifting our tactics as well. Americans have no intention of taking sides in a sectarian struggle or standing in the crossfire between rival factions. Our mission is help the elected government in Iraq defeat common enemies, to bring peace and stability to Iraq, and make our nation more secure. Our goals are unchanging. We are flexible in our methods to achieve those goals.”

10:40am. He’s laying out a strategy for stopping sectarian violence. There’s a “national compact” in the works to “resolve the most difficult issues dividing their country” including a schedule for disarming death squads, sharing oil revenues, amending the constitution (for what? no elaboration. how about de-sharia-fication), and de-Baathification. Bush has also asked Saudi Arabia (great) and Jordan to help persuade Sunni insurgents to accept “national reconciliation.” Goooood luck.

10:46am. “I know many Americans are not satisfied with the situation in Iraq. I’m not satisfied either…We cannot allow our dissatisfication to turn into disillusionment about our purpose in this war. We must not look at every success of the enemy as a mistake on our part or cause for investigation or reason to bring the troops home. We must not fall prey to the sophisticated propaganda by the enemy (mm note: are you listening, CNN?) who is trying to undermine our confidence and make us believe that our presence in Iraq is the cause of all their problems.”

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10:47am. Question time.

Bush responding to AP’s Terence Hunt query (here’s Hunt’s first dispatch) about whether we are winning and why:

“…The only way we lose in Iraq is if we leave before the job is done. And I’m confident we can succeed in the broader war on terror–this ideological conflict. I’m confident because I believe the power of liberty will defeat the ideology of hate every time if given a chance. I believe that the radicals represent the few in the Middle East.”

The few? That’s where I part ways with the president.

Watch my interview with Mark Steyn.

11:02am. Glad to hear the president make a reference to still-missing kidnapped Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.

Q: Do you have confidence in PM Maliki? Reporter makes reference to this:

U.S. and Iraqi forces on Wednesday raided Sadr City, the stronghold of the feared Shiite militia led by radical anti-American cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, but Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki disavowed the operation, saying he had not been consulted and insisting “that it will not be repeated.”

The defiant al-Maliki also slammed the top U.S. military and diplomatic representatives in Iraq for saying Iraq needed to set a timetable to curb violence ravaging the country.

“I affirm that this government represents the will of the people and no one has the right to impose a timetable on it,” al-Maliki said at a news conference.

U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad said Tuesday that al-Maliki had agreed to the plan, announced at a rare joint appearance with Gen. George Casey, the top U.S. commander in Iraq, who said he would not hesitate to ask for more troops if he felt they were necessary.

At least four people were killed and 18 injured in the overnight fighting in the overwhelmingly Shiite eastern district known as Sadr City, according to Col. Khazim Abbas, a local police commander, and Qassim al-Suwaidi, director of the area’s Imam Ali Hospital.

The U.S. military said Iraqi army special forces, backed up by U.S. advisers, carried out a raid to capture a “top illegal armed group commander directing widespread death squad activity throughout eastern Baghdad,” the military said in a statement.

Al-Maliki, who is commander in chief of Iraq’s army, heatedly denied he knew anything about the raid:

“We will ask for clarification about what has happened in Sadr City. We will review this issue with the multinational forces so that it will not be repeated…The Iraqi government should be aware and part of any military operation. Coordination is needed between Iraqi government and multinational forces.”

Bush says he’s waiting for a full transcript of Maliki’s remarks.

11:09am. Q from WaPo’s Peter Baker - Why hasn’t anyone been “held accountable?”

Bush on Rumsfeld: “I’m satisfied with how he’s done all his jobs. He’s a smart, tough, capable administrator.”

“The ultimate accountability rests with me. That’s what the 2004 campaign was out. I believe our generals are doing the job we asked them to do. And this country owes them a lot of support.”

11:12am. Q: How does the president reconcile saying that we won’t leave until we are done in Iraq with his statement that Americans will not stand in the crossfire between rival factions?

Bush’s answer is too glib here. He says we will simply prevent civil war between Shias and Sunnis from breaking out in the first place.

11:21am. Q: Is the coming election a referendum on Iraq? Should it be?

***Strongest answer by Bush so far***

“I think the coming election a referendum on these two things: Which party has got the plan that will enable our economy to continue to grow? And which party has a plan to protect the American people? And Iraq is part of the security of the U.S. If and when we succeed in Iraq, our country will be more secure. If we don’t succeed, the country is less secure…I understand some people in Washington don’t think we are at war. They are just wrong, in my opinion. The enemy still wants to strike us. The enemy still wants to achieve safe have from which to plot and plan. The enemy would like to have WMD in order to attack us. These are lethal, cold-blooded killers. And we must do everything we can to protect the American people, including questioning detainees and listening to their phone calls from outside the country to inside the country…and as you know, there were some recent votes on that issue. And the Democrats voted against giving our professionals the tools necessary to protect the American people.

…I do not question their patriotism. I question whether or not they understand how dangerous this world is…

11:33am. Q on working with Dems.

***Second-best answer***

Bush: “I believe I’ll be working with a Republican-controlled Congress and a Republican-controlled Senate. I understand in Washington people have already determined the outcome of the election. They think it’s over. We’ve got people dancing in the end zones and measuring the drapes. But the American people are going to side on who best to protect the American people and who best to keep the taxes low.”

11:38am. Q - Do you believe Iraq will be able to defend, sustain, and govern itself, by the time you leave office?

Bush: I believe Iraq will be able to defend, govern, and sustain itself, otherwise I’d pull our troops out. You oughta understand that. (Voice rising.) And the parents of our troops must understand that if I didn’t believe we could succeed and if I didn’t believe it was necessary for the security of this country to succeed, I wouldn’t have your loved ones there…And that’s a back-handed way of getting me to put a timetable. My answer is it will work as fast as we can get the job done.

11:43am. Last question. Reference to “the responsibility era” and GOP scandals.

Bush: If any person in any party fails to live up to the standards, they ought to be held accountable…People have to trust elected leaders in order for a democracy to function…I take responsibility for the decision I make…bring honor to the offices we hold…

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