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President Bush responded to questions from reporters in a nationally televised conference Tuesday night.

The current situation in Iraq and the administration’s efforts toward thwarting the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks dominated Bush’s first televised news conference since the war’s start in 2003.

During the 45-minute question-answer session, Bush said he understands why some Americans are doubtful of the condition in Iraq but held firm that America has an “obligation to work toward a more free world.”

“I feel strongly about what’re we’re doing … We must not waver,” Bush said.

Despite the recent onslaught of violence and anti-American sentiments in such Iraqi cities as Fallujah, Bush said he would send more troops to the country if necessary, a move most Iraqis would support, he said.

“The violence we have seen is a power grab by these extreme and ruthless elements; it’s not a popular uprising,” the president said during the broadcast. “Most Iraqis by far reject violence and oppose dictatorship.”

Bush was fervent in denying that the ongoing Iraqi situation mimics the war patterns seen in Vietnam.

University of Wisconsin political science professor Donald Downs said such a correlation could be both accurate and problematic. Either way, he feels Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry, all responsible Democrats and the majority of Americans must recognize the impending situation in Iraq.

“[With] Vietnam, we had to get out. We cannot do that here,” Downs said, adding that the consequences of the two wars differ. “It’s good [Bush] is saying that.”

Bush also came under fire from reporters about whether he should claim responsibility for the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. He failed to give a definitive answer.

“I feel incredibly grieved when I meet with family members (of victims of the attacks), and I do quite frequently,” Bush said. “There are some things I wish we did looking back. Hindsight is easy.”

Downs feels Bush’s decision to hold a press conference is a response to current events in Iraq. He also said the American public’s perception of Bush and the war may have spurred him into action.

According to a Newsweek poll released Saturday, 51 percent of Americans disapprove of the way in which the president is dealing with Iraq. Forty-four percent of those polled favor his actions.