I'll make a prediction about tonight's press conference that Bush will be holding. The White House press corps(e) was widely criticized after the big press conference he held just prior to the start of the Iraq war because all of the questioners were so subservient to Bush. No tough questions, and no attempts to ask follow-ups. Everyone just asked what they'd prepared and let him get away with canned, or non-answers. No one objected when he ignored the long-standing tradition of allowing the senior member of the press (Helen Thomas) to ask the first question. In fact, she was ignored completely, and Bush went through a prepared list of those he was willing to take questions from.
Well, times have changed. Iraq is now widely seen as a mess, and Bush's approval ratings have started to tank. He gave a miserable performance on Meet the Press recently and now the 911 hearings have raised the issue of his and his administration's competence and judgement to the point where the public is starting to take notice.
So tonight might be a barometer of what the rest of the year holds. Don't look for the answers to specific questions, either in terms of content or even how he handles them. What will be more important, heading into the election campaign, will be how the press treats him. If they're still deferential and toothless, it means they'll be going easy on him during the rest of the campaign. On the other hand if he gets a good going over, with lots of tough questions, it could signal that the tipping point has been reached, and that the press has (finally) turned on him.