The Republican presidential candidate George W Bush has said he regrets the fact that people heard him make an insulting comment about a journalist, but he refused to apologise.
Just before a campaign speech in Illinois, Mr Bush said to his running mate Dick Cheney: "There's Adam Clymer, major league asshole from the New York Times."
Mr Bush later said he did not realise that live microphones were going to pick up the remark, but he stopped short of an actual apology.
Time to step up Barack Obama. Time to step up.