Bush Defends Iraq Invasion

President Bush is defending his decision to invade Iraq, saying Saddam Hussein was a madman with the ability to make weapons of destruction.

"Saddam Hussein was dangerous, and I'm not just going to leave him in power and trust a madman," said Mr. Bush in an Oval Office interview broadcast Sunday on NBC's "Meet the Press." "He's a dangerous man. He had the ability to make weapons at the very minimum."

President Bush continued to link the invasion of Iraq with war on terror.

"For the parents of the soldiers who have fallen who are listening, David Kay, the weapons inspector, came back and said, in many ways Iraq was more dangerous than we thought," the president said. "We are in a war against these terrorists who could bring great harm to America, and I've asked these young ones to sacrifice for that."

President Bush has linked Al Qaeda to Saddam Hussein in the past, but added there is no evidence linking Iraq to the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks.

Former chief U.N. weapons inspector Hans Blix, a harsh critic of the Bush administration, expressed doubt about the claim that Iraq was capable of making weapons of mass destruction. "Now we hear a case saying that 'Well, there were programs, there were laboratories that were suitable ... or there were intentions,'" Blix said in a broadcast interview on Sunday. "I would say, 'All right, let's have evidence of that.'''

Mr. Bush pledged to cooperate with the commission he set up last week to examine intelligence on Iraq and the spread of weapons of mass destruction. "I will be glad to visit with them," the president said. "I will be glad to share with them knowledge. I will be glad to make recommendations, if they ask for some."

Bush also responded to concerns the commission was not required to complete its review until after the presidential election in November. He said the panel needs time to do its work. "We didn't want it to be hurried. This is a strategic look, kind of a big-picture look about the intelligence-gathering capacities of the United States of America."

"Now, look, we are in a political season," he said. "There is going to be ample time for the American people to assess whether or not I made ... good calls — whether I used good judgment, whether or not I made the right decision in removing Saddam Hussein from power," Bush said. "I look forward to that debate."

The interview, Bush's first appearance on the news show, comes as his approval rating has dipped to 47 percent in an Associated Press-Ipsos poll taken in early February; that compares with 56 percent just a month ago.

President Bush said CIA Director George Tenet's job is not in jeopardy despite election-year questions about the accuracy of prewar intelligence on Iraq.

"I strongly believe the CIA is ably led by George Tenet," Mr. Bush said. Asked whether Tenet's job was in jeopardy, Bush answered: "No, not at all, not at all."