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My legacy of mistakes and triumphs, by Bush
Ed Harris13 Jan 2009
GEORGE Bush warned his successor that a terrorist attack "on our homeland" remained the greatest threat to the US as he delivered his final press conference.
The outgoing US president said of Barack Obama: "The most urgent threat he, and other presidents after him, have got to deal with is an attack on our homeland. I wish I could report that is not the case, but there's still an enemy out there that would like to inflict damage on Americans."
Mr Bush said he believed North Korea may have an enriched uranium programme and Iran was "still dangerous". Appearing before the White House press corps to thank them for their work during his two terms in power, he said he had received a security briefing every day except Sundays for the past eight years. He was just eight months into his presidency when New York and Washington were attacked by terrorists on 11 September 2001.
In a wide-ranging question and answer session, Mr Bush was asked about his mistakes, the economy, the Middle East and his future.
Questioned about America's "moral standing" in the world, he strongly disagreed with suggestions that it had been damaged by the war in Iraq.
Mr Bush acknowledged, however, that it had been a mistake to make a speech about US troops in Iraq underneath a banner proclaiming "mission accomplished" in 2003.
Mr Bush also outlined some of his presidential disappointments, including the prisoner abuse scandal at Abu Ghraib, and "not having weapons of mass destruction" in Iraq - the main reason given by the US for launching a war on Saddam Hussein's regime.
Mr Bush said the response to Hurricane Katrina in 2005 in New Orleans had been fast enough, but conceded that "things could have been done better". The Bush administration was widely criticised by residents who felt abandoned in the immediate aftermath of the disaster.
Mr Bush wished Mr Obama luck, saying he would be well supported. He described his successor as "smart and engaging" and "a much better speechmaker than me".
