Today, I read through the transcript of the Presidental Press Conference. The Press tried to get Bush to admit to making _any_ kind of mistake with pre-9/11 stuff, post-9/11, anything. He dodged again and again, but they just kept asking.

I don't like Bush as a President and I'm ashamed he represents our country. Let's go through some of the things he said:

On June 30th, Iraqi sovereignty will be placed in Iraqi hands. Sovereignty involves more than a date and a ceremony. It requires Iraqis to assume responsibility for their own future. Iraqi authorities are now confronting the security challenge of the last several weeks. In Fallujah, coalition forces have suspended offensive operations, allowing members of the Iraqi Governing Council and local leaders to work on the restoration of central authority in that city. These leaders are communicating with the insurgents to ensure an orderly turnover of that city to Iraqi forces, so that the resumption of military action does not become necessary.

So we are going to hand over sovereignty to the Iraqis on June 30th, but we are not pulling our troops out. The new Iraqi gov't is supposed to be in charge of security of the country.. and our troops are going to be there to maintain the security of the country. Now, I highly doubt that we are going to let the new Iraqi gov't command our troops, so our troops are going to be there and are going to be fighting. So.. have we really handed over sovereignty to the Iraqis? Have we really handed over the responsibility of security to them?

None of these acts is the work of a religion; all are the work of a fanatical, political ideology. The servants of this ideology seek tyranny in the Middle East and beyond. They seek to oppress and persecute women. They seek the death of Jews and Christians, and every Muslim who desires peace over theocratic terror.

I love that in the same paragraph he says that it's not about religion, it's just about theocracy. Nice. Jackass.

Q Thank you, Mr. President. What's your best prediction on how long U.S. troops will have to be in Iraq? And it sounds like you will have to add some troops; is that a fair assessment?

THE PRESIDENT: Well, I -- first of all, that's up to General Abizaid, and he's clearly indicating that he may want more troops. It's coming up through the chain of command. If that's what he wants, that's what he gets. Generally, we've had about 115,000 troops in Iraq. There's 135,000 now, as a result of the changeover from one division to the next. If he wants to keep troops there to help, I'm more than willing to say, "Yes, General Abizaid."

Wow, thanks Mr. Commander-in-Chief. Thanks for letting us know that someone else is calling the shots. Jackass.

.... there's a ton of stuff here. I'm pretty tired, so let's cut to the chase:

Q Do you feel a sense of personal responsibility for September 11th?

...

Q Mr. President, I'd like to follow up on a couple of these questions that have been asked. One of the biggest criticisms of you is that whether it's WMD in Iraq, postwar planning in Iraq, or even the question of whether this administration did enough to ward off 9/11, you never admit a mistake. Is that a fair criticism? And do you believe there were any errors in judgment that you made related to any of those topics I brought up?

...

Q Thank you, Mr. President. Two weeks ago, a former counterterrorism official at the NSC, Richard Clarke, offered an unequivocal apology to the American people for failing them prior to 9/11. Do you believe the American people deserve a similar apology from you, and would you be prepared to give them one?

...

Q Thank you, Mr. President. Sir, you've made it very clear tonight that you're committed to continuing the mission in Iraq. Yet, as Terry pointed out, increasing numbers of Americans have qualms about it. And this is an election year. Will it have been worth it, even if you lose your job because of it?

...

Q I guess I just wonder if you feel that you have failed in any way? You don't have many of these press conferences, where you engage in this kind of exchange. Have you failed in any way to really make the case to the American public?

And my favorite.....

Q Thank you, Mr. President. In the last campaign, you were asked a question about the biggest mistake you'd made in your life, and you used to like to joke that it was trading Sammy Sosa. You've looked back before 9/11 for what mistakes might have been made. After 9/11, what would your biggest mistake be, would you say, and what lessons have you learned from it?

The Bush Administration absolutely WILL NOT admit to making any mistakes at all. I think the web of lies and half-truths they have put together is breaking down and they are desperately trying to ignore the cracking noise.

He didn't answer any of the above questions, he dodged every single one of them. *sigh* I want him to go away.