Either he said it while campaigning in Chicago or he's lying.
Speaking of which, was he lying years ago when he said the SEC "lost" his insider-trading paperwork, or is he lying now when he says Harken's lawyers didn't file it?? Both cannot be true, so one is a lie.
Several of these reporters and commentators saw fit to write scathing commentary based upon campaign promises THEY remember him making, just like he claimed he did. I guess they were hallucinating or - gasp! - lying when they implied that he made those campaign promises. How utterly shocking! The press certainly would never lie about a Republican, would they?
One of the articles even quotes Bush on January 7, 2000, stating that war would be a necessary exception to running a budget deficit, but hey, since it's not specifically to a reporter in Chicago, it doesn't mean diddly, right?
Sorry, I'm going to save my angst for something a little more important. I was trying to be helpful, but since you're convinced that Bush is a liar, I'll leave you to your convictions. The folks who bother the follow the links can discern for themselves what they believe.