Bush: 'We have lived through extraordinary events'
President pays tribute to journalists who died in Iraq
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President Bush speaks to an audience member at the opening of the annual White House Correspondents' Association dinner.
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SPECIAL REPORT
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WASHINGTON (CNN) -- President Bush told a gathering of journalists Saturday night that "we have lived through some extraordinary events" leading up to and during the war in Iraq.
"We have seen a dictator defy the world, and we have seen a coalition of free nations give its answer," Bush said in remarks at the 89th annual White House Correspondents' Association dinner.
"We have witnessed the swift advance of soldiers and Marines through hostile territory, the fall of a tyrant and of the monuments he raised to himself, and the beginnings of a free nation in the very place that civilization began."
In his brief remarks, Bush praised the efforts of journalists "who often shared in the dangers of war.
"I think it is fair to say the journalists grew to respect the skill and bravery and decency of the men and women who wear our nation's uniform," Bush said, prompting applause from the audience. "And I am certain that our military gained greater respect for the journalists traveling with them, who showed a tenacity and courage of their own," he said, prompting more applause.
"Because of journalists who accepted risk and hardship, the first draft of history has been vivid and has been moving," Bush said.
Bush paid tribute to 13 journalists who died covering the war and singled out two: Michael Kelly, editor-at-large for The Atlantic Monthly magazine and a columnist for The Washington Post, and NBC News correspondent David Bloom.
Bush called Kelly "a soldier's journalist," and said Bloom was "the perfect man to carry viewers along on the charge to Baghdad."
