It would be easy to feel sorry for George W. Bush, given his many woes — rock-bottom poll ratings, a hostile Congress and unending bad news from Iraq. Easy, that is, until you realize just how much he still manages to get his way, even when the chips are down.

Believing in yourself is the key to leadership, and Bush never seems to doubt himself no matter how many Americans stop believing in him. Sometimes his sheer refusal to acknowledge the legitimacy of opposing views finally wears everybody down, enabling him to do whatever he wants to do. And this seems to be another of those times, despite all that is stacked up against him.

In a series of media interviews, culminating last week with his first news conference of the year, the president gave no quarter to critics — especially on the subject of the Iraq War. And he keeps on describing exceedingly dire consequences if the nation does not stick to his way forward.

“What’s different about this conflict than some others is that if we fail there, the enemy will follow us here,” Bush said at the Valentine’s Day news conference. “I firmly believe that.”

Such a claim defies logic in the eyes of many experts, but he really does not appear to be bluffing. And the beauty of such a dark scenario is that, no matter how many think it overblown, few lawmakers want to challenge the president too vigorously on this point. Who knows? He might be right.

With steely determination and confidence, the kind that most people could never muster in the face of so much adversity, Bush is pressing forward in ways that recall the unpredictable days of the Florida voting recount in the 2000 presidential election. Indeed, the bravado he displayed during those times of uncertainty about whether he would actually be elected to the White House has often served him well in office.

It is as though Bush was oddly strengthened by the rocky outcome of his first presidential campaign, forced as he was to boldly assert his right to power against those who, ever since, have cast doubt on the election results. After all, once you learn how to claim a great mandate despite being elected under a cloud, there is not much that can get in your way.

True to form, Bush shows no sign of letting Capitol Hill opposition to his latest Iraqi war plan slow him down — even though he and his GOP backers all but conceded defeat last week as the House and Senate both moved toward adopting a non-binding resolution opposing his troop surge. “They have every right to express their opinion, and it is a non-binding resolution,” Bush noted in his White House session with reporters.

Apparently assured that any such resolution could be easily ignored, Bush quickly moved the ball to the next debate — one he is more confident of winning. “Soon Congress is going to be able to vote on a piece of legislation that is binding, a bill providing emergency funding for our troops,” the president observed.

At a minimum, Bush emerges from the non-binding resolution flap a bit scarred but still able to do as he likes in Iraq. Even if Congress moves next to fiddle with funding the war, he might just have the upper hand.

History is on the president’s side. Even in unpopular wars, Congress has failed to sustain major efforts to control the purse strings. As unpopular as the Vietnam War was, Congress never cut funding while U.S. troops were on the ground in Indochina.

While tolerating the right of lawmakers to “express their opinion” in a resolution, Bush is signaling that a fierce fight awaits those who aim to cut war funds. For starters, he will not shy away from accusing Congress of abandoning the troops, no matter how clever Democratic leaders might be in crafting measures that undercut Bush policy without restricting the flow of resources for troops on the ground.

“Our troops are counting on their elected leaders in Washington, D.C., to provide them with the support they need to do their mission,” Bush said last week in reference to the upcoming congressional vote on emergency war funds.

Even if the president prevails in his struggle against congressional raids on his war policy, he seems to clearly understand that even his own bravado is running out of currency.

Describing to reporters how he reacted to a member of Congress who recently urged him to be more eloquent in defending the war, Bush said he told the lawmaker, “I can talk all day long, but what really matters to the American people is to see progress.”

While it’s refreshing to know that Bush understands such realities, you have to wonder when, if ever, the lack of progress in Iraq will finally bring him to the acceptance of failure that so many Americans now share.

Contributing Editor Craig Crawford is a news analyst for NBC, MSNBC and CNBC. He can be reached at ccrawford@cq.com.