President Bush is in perfect position to energize his election effort as he heads into the last two months of the campaign.

Organizers of the Republican National Convention have set the table for President Bush to deliver a speech tonight that could lock in the party’s message and help propel Bush into the White House for another four years.

Although many had thought the GOP convention would be a ho-hum, dull gathering, the first three days were marked by events that were both interesting and exciting.

The first night was highlighted by excellent speeches by Sen. John McCain and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani. McCain delivered a thoughtful, low-key analysis of the war against terror and the terrible consequences if those who engage in terrorist acts are not met head-on by an effective offensive campaign led by the United States. He didn’t pull any punches in saying Bush was the perfect choice to direct this fight. There was no equivocation.

Next was Giuliani, who fired up the crowd with his praise of Bush and the need to return him to office for another four years.

Delegates must have left Madison Square Garden far more optimistic and enthused about the November election than when they arrived.

Tuesday evening, delegates heard from California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who delivered a talk that was graded a perfect 10 by many seasoned political observers. He was followed by first lady Laura Bush, who, in the opinion of numerous television critics, delivered the best national convention talk of any first lady. The combination of Schwarzenegger and Laura Bush, along with the appearance of the Bush daughters, Barbara and Jenna, should have left those in the Garden with high hopes.

Wednesday’s star was Sen. Zell Miller, a Georgia Democrat who delivered the keynote address at the 2000 Democratic National Convention. Speeches by Vice President Dick Cheney and Mrs. Cheney added to an effective combination that, together with speeches on Monday and Tuesday, have elevated GOP hopes of winning the November election.

Now, the big question is what kind of job President Bush will do with his address, not only to the GOP delegates but to the national audience that will be watching on television. Only the Public Broadcasting System, CNN, C-SPAN and Fox have been giving full, live coverage of the evening convention activities, but today, the three national networks also will broadcast Bush’s speech.

Bush appears to be riding rising poll figures in recent days; there usually is a bounce in ratings for the candidate, Republican or Democrat, immediately following the party’s national convention.

Bush’s poll figures have improved in recent days; Kerry’s failed to keep pace, and Bush will be wrapping up a highly successful GOP convention that has injected new enthusiasm into his campaign effort.

If he is able to deliver a talk that hits a home run — or even a double or triple — with those in Madison Square Garden as well as those watching on television and maybe even some of the biased media corps, he will position himself in a very favorable spot heading into the final two months of the campaign.