WASHINGTON, Nov 8: Former president George Bush, father of the present White House occupant, believes his son's re-election triumph caps the end of a "strange, difficult year".

The elder Bush said it had been difficult sitting on the sidelines watching the campaign mudslinging, in an interview with the BBC whose transcript was released on Monday.

"It was a strange, difficult year. And when it's your own son in there ... it's very difficult. It hurts far more when you son is criticized than when I used to be in that crossfire," said Mr Bush, who served a single term as president but lost the 1992 election to Bill Clinton.

A particularly hard moment came in the final hours of this year's campaign, the elder Bush said, when early exit polls suggested that President George Bush might not be re-elected.

"When I got off the aeroplane, flying to Washington to go to the White House, they said these exit polls all look bad. It felt like somebody had hit me right, square in the stomach," said Bush, who learned some hours later that the polls were skewed.

"These exit poll people ought to be fired. The networks don't get their money's worth - they're wrong all the time," he told the BBC. Bush senior said the tone of presidential campaign had become considerably harsher since he had run for the White House.

"I think there was more visceral hatred about the president than I've ever felt. I remember campaigns being really tough, when I ran against Clinton, but .... they weren't using words like 'liar' and it wasn't as difficult," he said.

"This one is more difficult than in the past I think."

He added that he felt his son would repair America's frayed relations with European allies during his second term.

"I think the Europeans that have opposed him on things ought to recognize that there is, what I would say, a fairly substantial mandate for the president's approach," the former president said.

"I would expect that the president would do what he can to make clear that the European alliance is very important to us and very strong." -AFP