Rumsfeld: I offered to resign twice

WASHINGTON, Feb. 4 (UPI) -- U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld twice offered President Bush his resignation over the Abu Ghraib prison abuse scandal, but Bush refused it.

"I submitted my resignation to President Bush twice during that period and told him that ... I felt that he ought to make the decision as to whether or not I stayed on," Rumsfeld said Thursday on CNN's "Larry King Live."

"And he made that decision and said he did want me to stay on."

The resignation offers followed public release of photos depicting Iraqi prisoner abuse at the notorious prison.

At the time, Bush publicly defended Rumsfeld.