WASHINGTON -- One hundred days into his second term, President George W. Bush seems a bit adrift. He has dipped below the 50-percent level in approval ratings (47 percent). His "60 stops in 60 days" campaign to promote his program to reform Social Security has boomeranged, with fewer people supporting his changes now than before. His nominee for United Nations ambassador is dangling in suspended animation in what was supposed to be a friendly Senate committee. Things are not going well for the president.

On April 28, Bush gained prime-time access to all four TV networks to promote his social security plan, discuss the high cost of gasoline and address other matters. The next night, Lou Dobbs, a CNN commentator, asked viewers to rate the president's message. Had Bush's presentation caused viewers to think more, less or the same about the Social Security plan he was espousing? Three percent thought better of it; 28 percent were unchanged in their view; while 70 percent were less favorably disposed to the plan. Dobbs did not ask about the fuel-price issue as Bush had not presented a plan.

I watched the president's TV appearance and it was not pretty. He could not get comfortable and he could not articulate his message. But it wasn't just the presentation that made the president's message unpopular; his message was not a pleasant one to most Americans.