Pretoria (South Africa), Jul 9: US president George W. Bush defended his use of prewar intelligence on Iraq, saying today he is "absolutely confident" in his actions despite the discovery that one claim he made about Saddam Hussein's weapons pursuits was based on false information.
Democrats have argued that the White House's acknowledgment that bush misspoke earlier this year when he said Saddam tried to buy uranium in Africa justifies a broad review of how the administration used prewar intelligence on Iraq.
Bush, at a news conference here with South African President Thabo Mbeki during a five-nation African tour, took on his critics.
"There's no doubt in my mind that when it's all said and done the facts will show the world the truth," he said. "There's going to be, you know, a lot of attempts to try to rewrite history, and I can understand that. But I'm absolutely confident in the decision I made."
Bush did not directly address the misstatement itself, made during his State of the Union address in January. Instead, he defended his decision to go to war based on a larger body of information.
"There is no doubt in my mind that Saddam Hussein was a threat to the world peace," Bush said. "And there's no doubt in my mind that the United States ... Did the right thing in removing him from power."
Bureau Report