U.S. President George W. Bush signaled the real beginning of the 2004 election campaign with his State of the Union address Tuesday night in Washington. The speech laid out key themes of the Bush re-election strategy, emphasizing the success in the war against terrorism and the brightening economic outlook. But like many stump speeches, little of it was remarkable: There were no memorable phrases, no flashes of personality. It was a performance by the president -- a man who appears to harbor no doubts about his policies and to remain convinced that he is the best individual for the job.

Mr. Bush has never lacked confidence. He loses no sleep over his decisions, no matter how momentous. At times, that confidence comes across as cockiness. The last time he was on the campaign trail, he was criticized for seeming to sneer at opponents and for dismissing his critics. There were traces of that old habit in his speech this week.

Yet contents of the speech suggested that, for all his certainty, the president's team is well aware of the criticisms that have been leveled against the administration. Mr. Bush made repeated references to critics and political opponents, and then denied their charges. His very willingness to engage in a debate -- however limited -- with those critics, suggests that the administration knows it must make its case to the public in the months ahead; it cannot take the outcome for granted.