Bush says he answered all September 11 questions

WASHINGTON (AFP) - President George W. Bush said he and Vice President Dick Cheney had answered every question from the panel investigating the September 11 attacks in an historic session of more than three hours.

"If we had something to hide, we wouldn't have met with them in the first place. We answered all their questions," said Bush, who had only grudgingly agreed to talk with the 10-member commission under strict conditions.

The White House insisted Cheney join the president, that they not be sworn to tell the truth, and that there be no transcript or recording of the session -- only notes taken by panel members and two White House lawyers.

The National Commission on Terrorist Attacks upon the United States is due to release its report in late July, right as Bush's race with his Democratic rival for the White House, Senator John Kerry, goes into high gear.

In a statement on its Internet site, the commission said Bush and Cheney had been "forthcoming and candid" and their answers would be of "great assistance" for its report.

In a brief appearance in the White House Rose Garden, hastily announced after the three hour and 10 minute session, Bush said he was looking forward to that final assessment.

"There was a lot of interest about how to better protect America. In other words, they're very interested in the recommendations that they're going to lay out," said Bush, whose official lawyer was present for the questions.

Bush said he would not provide details, but later revealed they had not asked him whether members of al-Qaeda, the Islamist militant group which carried out the attacks in 2001, still operated in the United States now.

Asked for the reasons behind his unprecedented insistence on Cheney's presence, Bush replied: "I think it was important for them to see our body language as well, how we work together."

The president's opponents charged the administration sought to limit the reach of potentially embarrassing revelations, and his insistence on testifying with Cheney has drawn criticism and ridicule.

Bush ducked a question on whether he owed it to the families of the roughly 3,000 victims of the attacks to record the session or provide a transcript.

A commission official said both members had longstanding, previously scheduled appointments and were not showing their displeasure with what was already a politically loaded meeting.

Bush has touted his leadership in the global war on terrorism ahead of the November 2 presidential election while battering Kerry's national security credentials.

But a poll published Thursday showed Bush's approval ratings in a slump, his race with Kerry a dead heat, and highlighted growing doubts about his handling of the war in Iraq .

And former counterterrorism aides have publicly called into question Bush's response to the growing threat from al-Qaeda after he took office in January 2001.

Critics have pointed to a secret August 6, 2001, briefing for the president, since made public, that warned bin Laden was determined to strike inside the United States and that US authorities had detected "patterns of suspicious activity in this country consistent with preparations for hijackings or other types of attacks."

Slightly more than a month later, members of al-Qaeda killed some 3,000 people after slamming hijacked airliners into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. A fourth jet crashed in Pennsylvania.

Bush and Cheney had been expected to face questions on their response to the August briefing, which the administration has said was long on "historical" information and short on "actionable" intelligence.

Although all 10 commission members sat down with Bush and Cheney promptly at 9:30 am, as scheduled, two Democrats left before the meeting ended at 12:40 pm: Vice-chairman Lee Hamilton and former senator Bob Kerrey.

A commission official said both members had longstanding, previously scheduled appointments and were not showing their displeasure with what was already a politically loaded meeting.

This makes me wanna hurl! Who do these bozos think they ARE? They DEMAND that Bush and Cheney weigh in on this, and then they have the audacity to say that "previously scheduled appointments" took precidence over THIS? They are obviously not after any "truth". They set up this whole thing to make their political "HACK" statement, which is: "Nothing the President or Vice President of America have to say will deter us from slinging mud in their faces."
MY question is: "How did we ever get here?" This is BEYOND outrage!

This is also a HUGE reason why I left the party that USED to care about America! Methinks there are many more out there who are realizing the Democrat party no longer stands for any real values. They talk about "Regime change". It's easy to see what kind of "Regime" they really want!

But a poll published Thursday showed Bush's approval ratings in a slump, his race with Kerry a dead heat, and highlighted growing doubts about his handling of the war in Iraq .

Only "a" poll??? That must be disheartening for this commission and the folks reporting on it, since that is the main reason for the commission in the first place. I have no doubt they will continue to plug away at accomplishing their goal.

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