WASHINGTON, Nov. 15 (Xinhuanet) -- US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld on Tuesday launched a verbal attack on Iraq war critics, dismissing allegations that the Bush administration twisted prewar intelligence.

    Apparently continuing the White House's newly-started assault on war critics from the Democrat Party, Rumsfeld argued at a Pentagon press conference that when the Democrats were in power, they also supported efforts to topple Saddam Hussein.

    He noted that former US President Bill Clinton, a Democrat, signed The Iraq Liberation Act and ordered four days of bombing of that country in December 1998.

    Rumsfeld also cited the words of Clinton, former Vice PresidentAl Gore, former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and Sandy Berger, Clinton's national security adviser, to prove his argument.

    With Democrats stepping up accusations that US President GeorgeW. Bush had misled the American public about the urgency of the Iraqi threat prior to his order to invade in March 2003, the Bush administration recently decided to fight back.

    On Monday, Bush said the Democrats were "playing politics" and the war critics were "irresponsible."

    However, with over 2,000 U.S. troops killed in Iraq and public support for the war dropping sharply, local analysts said it is doubtful that the Bush's counter attack on critics will work out. Enditem