WHEN YOU USE A WORD, IT MEANS EXACTLY WHAT I CHOOSE IT TO MEAN, NOTHING MORE OR LESS

President Bush tells interviewers from The Washington Post what the American people are thinking right now -- even if it seems like the exact opposite of what we're thinking:

...I think what the people want is -- they want a couple of things. They want to see Democrats and Republicans work together to achieve a common objective, and they want us to win in Iraq. A lot of people understand that if we leave Iraq, there will be dire consequences -- in other words, if we leave before the job is done. There are some, a fair number of people, who say, "Get out now." So I view the election results as people are not satisfied with the progress being made in Iraq and expect to see a different strategy to achieve an important objective.

But the election results seemed people wanted to bring the venture in Iraq to closure. That seemed to be the strong lesson. And what indications are there that you're actually listening to that sentiment?

Oh, Mike, look, I want to achieve the objective. I think the American people -- I know the American people are very worried about an external threat and that they recognize that failure in Iraq would embolden that external threat, and they expect this administration to listen with people, to work with Democrats, to work with the military, to work with the Iraqis to put a plan in place that achieves the objective. There's not a lot of people saying, "Get out now." Most Americans are saying, "We want to achieve the objective."

But there are a lot of people who are saying, "Let's get out with a phased deployment over a certain period of time."

If they felt -- if that leads to victory, it needs to be seriously considered. And I'm considering all options and listening very carefully to a lot of good people who have got different opinions about how to proceed.

There you go: Even if you're saying "Get the hell out," you're really saying "Stay the course." Bush tell us so, and he's the Decider.