61.   Bush has pledged to press forward with the deployment of a controversial national missile defense system meant to shoot down incoming missiles as they approach U.S. territory.

62.   Bush was asked if U.S. plans for a missile defense system would cover Taiwan.

63.   Bush will also offer to make Putin a partner of sorts in his proposed missile defense system, an idea the Russian leader has viewed with some promise.

64.   Bush plans to begin building the missile system, in a limited fashion, next spring.

65.   Bush supports a global missile defense system.

66.   Bush also tried to allay suspicions that he is willing to forge ahead with a technically flawed missile defense system.

67.   Bush and his national security team have not described the ultimate architecture of their missile defense system, nor is there any official timetable for deployment.

68.   Bush and Putin have been saying that a deal that would allow Bush to speed ahead with tests of an anti-ballistic missile system might be within reach.

69.   Bush faces pressure from US allies over his controversial decisions to abandon the Kyoto global warming pact and accelerate work on a missile defense system.

70.   Bush has made the Russians nervous by advocating the buildup of a massive missile defense system, while Gore supports a more modest system.