Kerry: Rumsfeld Should Quit

Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry has renewed his call for Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld to step down amid the growing scandal over the alleged abuse of Iraqi prisoners by U.S. soldiers, reports CBS News' Steve Chaggaris.

"I called for Rumsfeld's resignation months ago over Iraq," Kerry told reporters Thursday. He said the abuse reports only compound the reason for Rumsfeld to quit.

"It's the way it was handled. The lack of information to the Congress, the lack of information to the country, not managing it, not dealing with it, recognizing it as an issue. But look this is, this is the frosting," Kerry said during a campaign appearance at a California high school.

"I think Iraq and the miscalculation and the overextension of the armed forces and the entire way in which they rushed the nation to war under these assumptions that he was making — which were incorrect — is a huge, historic miscalculation and I thought he should have resigned then."

Kerry also criticized President Bush's handling of the prisoner abuse scandal, saying, "As president, I will not be the last to know what is going on in my command."

In a Rose Garden appearance shortly after Kerry's remarks, President Bush apologized for the abuse and humiliation of Iraqi prisoners. Mr. Bush had called the abuse "abhorrent" in recent days but had stopped short of an apology.

White House aides have said the president was not told about photos showing prisoners being abused before they were aired on television or about a Pentagon report issued in March before it turned up in the news.

"I will demand accountability for those who serve and I will take responsibility for their actions," Kerry said. "And I will do everything that I can in my power to repair the damage that this has caused to America to our standing in the world and to the ideals for which we stand."

Kerry said he learned in the Navy that the captain was in charge and took responsibility. He cited President Kennedy's public statement after the Bay of Pigs invasion in 1961 that "I'm the responsible officer of the government."

"Today, I have a message for the men and women of our armed forces. As commander in chief, I will honor your commitment and I will take responsibility for the bad as well as the good," Kerry said.