WASHINGTON ( CNN ) -- President Bush admitted mistakes but defended his accomplishments in the final White House news conference of his presidency Monday . President Bush addresses reporters at the White House on Monday in his final news conference . `` Clearly , putting a 'Mission Accomplished ' [ banner ] on an aircraft carrier was a mistake , '' Bush said about how his administration handled the fall of Baghdad to U.S. troops . `` It sent the wrong message . '' He termed other aspects of the U.S. invasion of Iraq `` disappointments , '' including the failure to find weapons of mass destruction and the treatment of prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison . `` I do n't know if you want to call those mistakes or not , but they were -- things did n't go according to plan , let 's put it that way , '' Bush said . Admitting another mistake , Bush said that he should have pursued a comprehensive immigration overhaul after the 2004 election , instead of Social Security reform . He said that Congress did not have the political willpower to tackle Social Security at the time because the program was not facing an `` imminent '' funding crisis . But Bush said plenty went right during his eight years in office , including the economy for most of his term . `` I inherited a recession , I 'm ending on a recession . In the meantime , there were 52 months of uninterrupted job growth , '' he said . `` And I defended tax cuts when I campaigned , I helped implement tax cuts when I was president , and I will defend them after my presidency as the right course of action . '' iReport.com : How will you remember Bush ? Bush also said that despite harsh criticism at the time , the federal government responded well to Hurricane Katrina and the flooding of New Orleans , Louisiana , in 2005 . Watch Bush defend his Katrina response » . `` Do n't tell me the federal response was slow when there was 30,000 people pulled off roofs right after the storm passed , '' he said Monday . `` Could things have been done better ? Absolutely . Absolutely . But when I hear people say the federal response was slow , then what are they going to say to those chopper drivers or the 30,000 that got pulled off the roofs ? '' he asked . Bush was steadfast that his administration did the right things in protecting the homeland from terrorists , even though critics said individual freedoms were compromised by administration policies . `` In terms of the decisions that I had made to protect the homeland , I would n't worry about popularity . What I would worry about is the Constitution of the United States and putting plans in place that make it easier to find out what the enemy is thinking , '' he said . The 43rd president says he does n't buy allegations that America 's image overseas has been tarnished during his terms , even if his popularity has suffered . `` My view is that most people around the world , they respect America . And some of them do n't like me -- I understand that -- some of the writers and the , you know , opiners and all that . That 's fine . That 's part of the deal . But I 'm more concerned about the country and -- and how people view the United States of America . They view us as strong , compassionate people who care deeply about the universality of freedom . '' Bush said that as a `` Type A '' personality , he 'll want to keep active after he turns the White House keys over to President-elect Barack Obama next Tuesday . Watch Bush bid reporters farewell » . `` I just ca n't envision myself , you know , the big straw hat and a Hawaiian shirt sitting on some beach , '' he said .
NEW : Bush touts ` ` 52 months of uninterrupted job growth '' NEW : President says most people around world still respect America . President says he put ` ` Mission Accomplished '' banner on wall . Bush speaks in final news report of second day .