Bush Calls Page Scandal 'Disgusting Behavior'

President Bush is trying to turn the political conversation back from what he called the "disgusting behavior" revealed in the Mark Foley scandal to the two key issues that Republicans believe they can win on in November -- national security and the economy.

In spite of the effect the Foley scandal has had on public perception of his party over the last week and a half, and the latest polls that show "palpable discontent with Republican leadership," Bush, speaking at a Rose Garden press conference this morning, stood by his statement that voters will keep the House and the Senate in Republican hands on Nov. 7

"I think when they get in that booth, they're going to be thinking about, you know, how best to secure the country from attack and, you know, how best to keep the economy growing," he said in response to a question about Speaker Dennis Hastert's leadership in the Foley matter and in the upcoming midterm elections.

But Bush said it is "disgusting behavior when a member of Congress betrays the trust of the Congress and a family that sent a young page up to serve in the Congress."

Questions about North Korea and Iraq dominated the press conference, and the president also addressed those issues and the economy in his opening statement. He was not asked a question about the Foley scandal until 50 minutes into the press conference.

North Korea

Bush said his administration is committed to diplomacy with regard to North Korea, but the United States "reserves all options to defend our friends and our interests in the region against the threats from North Korea."

He defended his administration's multilateral approach, saying that bilateral negotiations in past administrations have not worked, so it was important to change the strategy.

"It used to be that the United States would say that, and that would be kind of a stand-alone statement," Bush said. "Now, when that statement is said, there are other nations in the neighborhood saying it."

Iraq Violence

The president defended his policy in Iraq, saying the United States is "constantly changing tactics to achieve a strategic goal. Our strategic goal is a country which can defend itself, sustain itself and govern itself."