Heckled inside and outside Australia's Parliament, President Bush offered a pointed answer to those who say the war with Iraq wasn't worth fighting. "Who can possibly think that the world would be better off with Saddam Hussein still in power?" Bush asked Thursday as he wrapped up a six-nation lobbying campaign to reinvigorate the war on terrorism among Asian and Pacific allies.
Bush told a divided Parliament that the war in Iraq was right and inevitable, but that Americans and Australians "still have decisive days ahead" and that the broader war on terror could be long and drawn out.
With thousands of anti-war demonstrators protesting outside the building and two hecklers jeering him from within, Bush thanked the government of Prime Minister John Howard for its help in both Iraq and Afghanistan.
"America, Australia and other nations acted in Iraq to remove a grave and gathering danger, instead of wishing and waiting while a tragedy drew closer," Bush said near the end of an eight-day overseas trip.
Bush arrived in Hawaii later Thursday after a 10-hour flight across the International Dateline. He was greeted with leis by Republican Gov. Linda Lingle and others as he stepped off Air Force One amid tight security at Hickam Air Force Base.
The president and his wife, Laura, visited the USS Arizona Memorial where 1,177 crewmen were killed on Dec. 7, 1941, in the surprise attack by Japanese fighter planes. The president and first lady dropped flower petals in the water around the sunken battleship.
Before heading for Hawaii, Bush observed a ceremony in which soldiers placed a wreath on Australia's Tomb of the Unknown Soldier to honor Sgt. Andrew Russell, an Australian solider who was the first casualty among U.S. allies in Afghanistan.
Bush praised Howard as "a leader of exceptional courage" for sending 2,000 troops to Iraq despite the largest peace protests in his nation since the Vietnam War.
For his part, Howard said as he introduced Bush to Parliament: "We have a divided view in this nation" on Iraq.
That was reinforced when 41 opposition-party lawmakers signed a letter criticizing Bush's war decision, saying no clear and present danger existed.
Thousands of demonstrators banged drums and shouted outside the Parliament building while a separate group of protesters jostled with security officials outside the U.S. embassy compound where Bush stayed overnight.
During Bush's speech, two Green Party senators jumped to their feet and shouted war protests at Bush. They were ordered removed from the chamber but sat and refused to leave. One of them, Sen. Bob Brown, shouted "we are not a sheriff," a reference to Bush's recent description of Howard.
"I love free speech," Bush said to laughter.
Several other lawmakers wore white arm bands to protest the Iraq war but remained silent.
Later, Bush spokesman Scott McClellan said that the president had been warned beforehand by Howard of possible heckling.
"It was expected," said McClellan. "That's the Australian Parliament for you."
For the most part, Bush was warmly received. Opposition Labor Party leader Simon Crean, in opening remarks, said that differences over Iraq "strengthen rather than weaken the relationship."
"Friends must be honest with one another," he added.
While Bush drew mixed applause with his remarks about Iraq, his comments on the broader war on terrorism brought approving shouts of "here, here" from both sides of the chamber.
"As free nations in peril, we must fight this enemy with all our strength," Bush said.
Both in the speech, and at an earlier news conference with Howard, Bush portrayed the battle ahead as long and difficult.
"We cannot let up in our offensive against terror, even a bit," Bush told Parliament. "And we must continue to build stability and peace in the Middle East and Asia as the alternatives to hatred and fear."
During the news conference, Bush also said that his administration hoped to complete negotiations on a free-trade agreement with Australia by year's end.
And he defended the continuing holding in Guantanamo, Cuba, of two Australians captured during fighting in Afghanistan. Their imprisonment has been a big issue in Australia.
He said he discussed the status of the two Australians with Howard and "there is an ongoing process." Still, he said, "These are people who were picked up off a battlefield of war."
Bush called suggestions by critics that the prisoners had been mistreated "utterly ridiculous."
