WASHINGTON, March 6 (UPI) -- President George W. Bush Saturday shrugged off criticism of a television campaign ad for its images used from the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
Bush, speaking in a news conference at his Crawford ranch with Mexican President Vicente Fox, said he would continue to "speak out about the effects of 9/11 on our country and my presidency."
The events "of that day as well as the war on terrorism is worthy of discussion and I look forward to discussing that with the American people."
Bush's statement came in response to a question about whether he would heed the call of some families of victims of the New York attack and from a group of firefighters that have endorsed Democrat John Kerry to pull the images from ads that began appearing Thursday.
The images of firefighters and rubble from the World Trade Center blink across the screen in a 30-second ad promoting Bush's leadership.
