[NYTr] Bush Lies on Katrina, Torture, Iraq: Denies Everything, Again

[nytr at olm.blythe-systems.com]

Bush Lies on Iraq, Katrina, Torture...

[The United States initially sent enough military force to Iraq: "I felt then
and I felt now that we had the troop levels that we needed."

Welcomed as liberators?. "I think we are welcomed, But it was not a peaceful
welcome." ... "I know a lot of people are glad that we're there"

Bush said he is confident he will succeed in watering down McCain's proposal
to ban the use of torture. "I'm confident we can..."

"I heard, you know, a couple of people say ... `Bush didn't respond because
of race- because he's a racist, ... "You can call me anything you want, but
do not call me a racist."]

AP- Dec 13, 2005
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/B/BUSH_INTERVIEW?SITE=MIHOL&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

Bush: Race Not a Factor in Katrina Response

WASHINGTON (AP) -- President Bush said Monday the federal government's
reaction to Hurricane Katrina was appalling, but was not the result of
racial indifference to blacks hard-hit by the storm. "You can call me
anything you want, but do not call me a racist," Bush said.

In an interview with "NBC Nightly News," Bush said he saw televised pictures
showing the government's faltering response to Katrina, and that his first
thought was that there was a breakdown of communications between all levels
of government after the Aug. 29 hurricane.

"I heard, you know, a couple of people say ... `Bush didn't respond because
of race- because he's a racist,' or alleged that," Bush said. "That is
absolutely wrong. And I - I reject that.'

"You can call me anything you want, but do not call me a racist. Secondly,
- this storm hit all up and down (the Gulf). It hit New Orleans. It hit
- Mississippi, too."

Bush spoke with Brian Williams, anchor of "NBC Nightly News," in the Oval
Office, aboard Air Force One en route to Pennsylvania and backstage at the
World Affairs Council in Philadelphia, where Bush was making a speech on
Iraq.

On U.S. troop levels, Bush said that despite an ongoing debate, he is
satisfied that the United States initially sent enough military force to
Iraq.

"I felt then and I felt now that we had the troop levels that we needed,"
Bush said. "History will make that determination."

Bush defended Vice President Dick Cheney's pre-war assertion that the United
States would be welcomed in Iraq as liberators.

"I think we are welcomed," he said. "But it was not a peaceful welcome."

He said terrorists, supporters of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein and
others who reject democratic change were determined to prevent a new
government from emerging. "But I - I think a lot of people are glad - I know
a lot of people are glad that we're there," he said. "And they're glad we're
helping them train their troops so they can take the fight."

Bush said he was confident that the White House could reach a compromise
with Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., on a proposal to ban the use of torture in
gaining information from suspected terrorists.

McCain is insisting on his language that no person in U.S. custody should be
subject to "cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment." The
administration says the U.S. does not torture and follows international
conventions on the treatment of prisoners. But the White House is wary of
restrictions that might prevent interrogators from gaining information vital
to the nation's security.

"I'm confident we can," Bush said. "On the other hand, we want to make sure
we're in a position to interrogate without torture. These are people that
still want to hurt us."

© 2005 The Associated Press.