With only eight days left in office, U.S. President George W. Bush reflected on his legacy at his final White House press conference Monday.
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U.S. President George W. Bush is pictured during his last news conference in the Brady press briefing room at the White House in Washington January 12, 2009. [Xinhua/Reuters]
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"MISTAKES, DISAPPOINTMENTS"
Bush acknowledged his mistakes and "disappointments" on the war in Iraq and the government's response to Hurricane Katrina in 2005,while defending his overall record.
"Clearly putting a 'Mission Accomplished' (banner) on an aircraft carrier was a mistake," he said, adding that "it sent the wrong message."
On May 1, 2003, the president stood on the aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln under that banner and declared that "the United States and its allies have prevailed."
However, more than 4,225 U.S. soldiers have been killed so far in the war, which drags on and on, and has been unpopular at home and abroad for years.
It was also believed to be a major reason for the Republican Party's consecutive defeats in 2006 congressional elections and 2008 presidential race.
"Obviously," the president continued, "some of my rhetoric has been a mistake."
He also said the scandal at the U.S.-run Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq "was obviously a huge disappointment."
"Not finding weapons of mass destruction (in Iraq) was a significant disappointment," said Bush, conceding his major rationale for invading Iraq in 2003 turned out to be baseless.
Bush also said that he should have pursed a comprehensive immigration overhaul after the 2004 election.
