Bush came to his Crawford ranch to prepare for next week’s presidential debate, the first of three sessions that could be pivotal in the close race.
He will hold a practice session on Saturday night with New Hampshire Sen. Judd Gregg, who will play the role of Kerry, White House spokesman Scott McClellan said.
In a potentially worrying sign for Bush, a new Time magazine poll found just 37 percent of registered voters believed he was being truthful in describing conditions in Iraq, while 55 percent thought conditions were worse than he made them out to be.
Bush acknowledged on Saturday there was “persistent violence in parts of Iraq” and that “serious problems remain in several cities.” His overall message was upbeat. He said interim Iraqi Prime Minister Iyad Allawi had “accomplished a great deal” and that “freedom is winning.”
http://gregg.senate.gov/index.htm