Bush vows to bar abuse, keep domestic surveillance going

U.S. President George W. Bush stressed Thursday that a new legislation will bar any abuse of prisoners, and meanwhile he will keep the controversial domestic spying program going.

Speaking at a White House news conference, Bush said a recently passed U.S. law bars torture and does not contain loopholes that would allow abuses.

He said no American will be allowed to "torture another human being anywhere in the world."

Bush also spared no time to defend the warrantless domestic communication surveillance program authorized by him in 2002.

Though many law experts and lawmakers have accused the program of invading personal privacy and freedom, the president insisted that the program is legal and "it's designed to protect civil liberties."

When asked about a controversy derived from a photo showing the indicted lobbyist Jack Abramoff and him together, Bush said he will cooperate with federal prosecutors investigating Abramoff if necessary.

The president also expressed the hope that the Senate should confirm Samuel Alito, his handpicked man for a Supreme Court seat, as soon as possible.

Saying the U.S. military remains strong and reliable, Bush dismissed a recent Pentagon-contracted report which concluded the U.S. Army has been stretched to a "breaking point" for repeated overseas deployments and feared that the United States may not have enough troops to eradicate the insurgency in Iraq.

The president said he believes in a complete victory in Iraq and he has enough troops to achieve that goal.

Source: Xinhua