Bush defends record in farewell speech

Washington: US President George W. Bush defended his record in a farewell address to the nation, and said he would have handled some matters differently during his eight years in the White House.

"Like all who have held this office before me, I have experienced setbacks," Bush said on Thursday night from the East Room of the White House.

"There are things I would do differently if given the chance. Yet I have always acted with the best interests of our country in mind," he said.

The 13-minute speech, his last scheduled public event until January 20 when he greets President-elect Barack Obama at the executive mansion on Inauguration Day, focused largely on the national security challenges he faced.

Bush said the September 11 terrorist attacks continue to shape how the US approaches the world.

He highlighted steps taken to deal with the terrorist threat, including the establishment of the Homeland Security Department and new tools given law enforcement to monitor movements of terrorists and disrupt their operations.

He defended those actions, some of which have been criticised by civil libertarians.

"There is legitimate debate about many of these decisions," he said. "But there can be little debate about the results. America has gone more than seven years without another terrorist attack on our soil."

Bush recalled the September 11 attacks and said he still carries the police shield given to him by a mother who lost her son that day.

"Most Americans were able to return to life much as it had been before 9/11," Bush said. "But I never did. Every morning, I received a briefing on the threats to our nation. And I vowed to do everything in my power to keep us safe."

Still, he said, terrorism remains the greatest threat to the nation and "we must never let down our guard."

The president cited progress in Iraq, saying the country was transformed from "a brutal dictatorship and a sworn enemy of America to an Arab democracy at the heart of the Middle East."

Bush said the transfer of power to Obama on January 20 is a demonstration of "the vitality of American democracy." He also said the election of the first black president "is a moment of hope and pride for our whole nation."

"I join all Americans in offering best wishes to President- elect Obama, his wife Michelle, and their two beautiful girls," he said.