President Bush said on Wednesday that the guilty verdict for a top aide to Vice President Dick Cheney must be respected, though he was saddened for Lewis "Scooter" Libby and his family.

"This was a lengthy trial on a serious matter and a jury of his peers convicted him and we've got to respect that conviction," Bush told CNN Espanol in an interview.

Libby, Cheney's former chief of staff, was convicted on perjury and obstruction of justice charges in a probe into the leak of a CIA officer's identity in a case involving the Iraq war. Libby's attorneys have said they plan to seek a new trial and, if denied, would appeal the conviction.

Bush said he was limiting his comments on the case because it was "an ongoing legal matter."

"On a personal note, I was sad. I was sad for a man who had worked in my administration, particularly sad for his family," Bush said.

White House officials have dismissed as "hypothetical" questions about a possible pardon for Libby, but they have not ruled it out.