Fox News defended Republican presidential hopeful Jeb Bush after he said he would still have authorized the invasion of Iraq “given what we know now,” claiming that Bush simply misunderstood the question.

Former Florida Governor Jeb Bush faced criticism from conservatives for comments he made during a May 11 interview with Fox News host Megyn Kelly, where he said that he would have authorized the invasion of Iraq after Kelly asked him if he would have done so “knowing what we know now.” Conservative columnist Byron York called Bush's response a “disastrous defense of the Iraq War” and radio host Laura Ingraham commented that “there has to be something wrong” with Bush for his answer.

But Fox News quickly helped Bush whitewash his comments as a misinterpretation. On May 11, soon after the interview aired, Kelly said that Bush was trying to answer a different question.

On the May 12 edition of his radio show, Fox's Sean Hannity gave Bush a platform to “clarify” his comments because “The media seems to be taking it another way and I wanted to see if I could clarify that today.” Bush claimed that he “interpreted the question wrong” but argued “I don't know what that decision would have been” on invading Iraq.

Later on The Kelly File, Kelly discussed Bush's comments with Fox senior political analyst Brit Hume. Hume argued that Bush “clearly misunderstood your question, although the question was quite straightforwardly posed.” Hume added that Bush's answer was “clearly and unmistakably an answer to a question about what you would have done had you not known what we know now.”

Media outlets have pointed out that Jeb Bush still hasn't clearly answered whether he would approve the invasion of Iraq knowing what we know today.