I know my job: Prez Bush hits back at 9/11 critics

In line with the current White House emphasis on the President’s wartime leadership, Bush mentioned the 9/11 attacks six times in the 25-minute speech. He also stressed his ‘‘resolve’’ — a word he used four times. The audience included a large contingent of National Guard troops who are scheduled to deploy to Iraq in the next few weeks. In the weeks since the Democratic primary race got under way, Bush’s speeches and public events have been designed to call attention to what aides consider the president’s strongest appeal to the public: His decisiveness following 9/11.

That emphasis also serves to underscore what Republicans consider the Opposition’s weakness — the impression that Democrats are less able to manage national security crises.

Bush also defended his decision to invade and occupy Iraq, insisting that the pre-war intelligence was incontrovertible that Saddam Hussein posed a threat to the US. ‘‘My administration looked at the intelligence information and we reached a reasonable conclusion that Saddam Hussein was a danger,’’ he said.

White House officials said recent scrutiny of Bush’s National Guard service had not influenced his decision to visit the base and meet with National Guard troops. However, two base officials said they learned of the visit only last week. —(LAT-WP)