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Bush Defends Decision to Invade Iraq
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http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=102C00B:3919ACA President also
accepts responsibility for decision to go to war with Iraq based on
faulty intelligence, and says it was still the right choice







George Bush

President Bush has accepted responsibility for the decision to go to
war with Iraq based on faulty intelligence, and says it was still the
right choice.

Mr. Bush gave the fourth in a series of speeches on Iraq on the eve of
parliamentary elections in the country.  The speeches are intended to
boost American public support for the war.

Mr. Bush said the elections are a "watershed moment" in history, after
which Iraq will be the only constitutional democracy in the Arab
world. But he added that terrorists will not just give up following
this week's election.

Senate Democratic leaders held a news conference ahead of the speech,
saying the president has still not leveled with the American people or
laid out a real strategy for success.  Senate Minority leader Harry
Reid said 41 members of the Senate, all Democrats, have sent a letter
to President Bush calling on him "to get things right in Iraq" after
the elections.

The president noted some in Washington are calling for a rapid U.S.
withdrawal from Iraq, and said he has carefully listened to all the
arguments but concluded that setting an artificial deadline for a
withdrawl would be a disaster.


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