Bush appears on Robertson's '700 Club' in pre-election bid.

Desperate to shore up Religious Right voters in advance of the elections, President George W. Bush granted what was described as an "exclusive" interview with TV preacher Pat Robertson's "700 Club" Nov. 1.

Bush sat down for a chat in the White House with Christian Broadcasting Network reporter Melissa Charbonneau, addressing a handful of questions on Iraq, taxes and his personal faith.

During the six-and-a-half minute taped interview, Bush defended his roundly criticized policy in Iraq, once again linking the war there to the struggle against terrorism.

"For those who say 'Oh, it's okay to leave Iraq before the job is done,' they do not understand the nature of the enemy or the enemy's plans," Bush said. "This is a different kind of war in which, if we leave, the enemy will follow us."

Added Bush, "It is conceivable that if these radicals and extremists control the country with oil resources, they could pull oil off the market, causing the West incredible economic pain and they would keep it off the market until such time that we abandon alliances such as Israel, which is one of their objectives is to destroy Israel."

Bush was equally adamant about his handling of the economy.

"Listen," he said "this economy is strong. For our people who are listening to you out there, we've overcome a recession, we've overcome war, hurricanes, high energy prices; this economy is strong. People are working, their wages are going up" (In fact, two days before the interview aired, the Commerce Department reported that economic growth is at its slowest rate in three years. Other reports have noted that wages are stagnant, barely keeping pace with inflation.)

Bush and Charbonneau spent one-third of the interview discussing faith. Bush talked about the importance of prayer and his gratitude toward people who pray for him and his family.

He concluded the interview by saying "You know, it's an amazing country when you've got total strangers praying for a guy like me. And I think it makes us very unique as a nation and I am grateful."

At the conclusion of the interview, the camera cut back to a grinning Robertson. "You know, the left beats him up all the time," Robertson said, "but I tell you I think the secret is praying. We're supposed to pray for our leaders whether we disagree or agree with everything they do. We need to pray for them, and the president really appreciates your prayer and my prayer and that was a great interview."

There wasn't much new in Bush's message, but his appearance allowed the president to try to invigorate his political base less than a week before the Nov. 7 elections.

Americans United asserted that it was still shocking to see Bush devote even a few minutes to Robertson's network. The interview is proof that despite the volatile Virginia televangelist's tendency to make extreme statements, he remains in good graces with the highest officials in the GOP.

Earlier in October, Bush convened a meeting at the White House with leaders of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC), the nation's largest Protestant denomination. SBC President Frank Page and his wife attended, along with Morris Chapman, president of the SBC's executive committee.

Baptist Press reported that Bush asked for the prayers of Southern Baptists and also spoke about what Page called "the reality of evil in the world." Chapman added that Bush also spoke of "his everyday reliance upon the guidance of God's spirit and the importance of faith in his life and leadership."