The "war on terrorism" has made life easier for President Bush's image handlers, reports Washington Post media critic Howard Kurtz, who describes the way journalists have come to "rely on Bush's inner circle for behind-the-scenes color about the tense atmosphere" inside the White House. Bush advisors are feeding reporters "morsels about the president's words, attire and demeanor in an attempt to build a narrative -- one that inevitably rests on a foundation paved by White House loyalists." According to magazine writer David Carr, "There's been a collective decision to re-image the president, and the media is fully cooperating. Journalists are very anxious to help him construct a wartime presidency, because we may be at war and he's the only president we have. When you have people with agendas serving as your eyes and ears, I just don't think you're necessarily getting the truth. It's just a more patriotic version of spin."

The terrorist attacks of September 11 have generated new rhetoric from the White House, using terms such as "crusade," "infinite justice" and "homeland defense." This column by William Safire examines the background of some of these terms.