Yes, Bush called the shots. His cabinet advised him but he made the final decisions. That's the president's job. Cabinet members don't have power over the president. He's their boss, not the other way around. That's how it's set up in our constitution. Maybe things are different in Scotland, but that's how it is in the USA.

You are correct that the US press manipulates public opinion, but you're mistaken if you don't think that a president can't do it too. That's why the president is said to have a bully pulpit.