President George W. Bush defended his administration's detention and interrogation policies for terror suspects on Friday, saying they are both successful and lawful. "When we find somebody who may have information regarding an attack on America, you bet we're going to detain them, and you bet we're going to question them," he said during a hastily called appearance in his official Oval Office. "The American people expect us to find out information, this actionable intelligence, so we can help protect them. That's our job."
Bush was referring to a report on two secret memos in 2005 that authorized extreme interrogation tactics against terror suspects. "This government does not torture," the president said.
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