Linda Ronstadt has launched a blistering attack on President George W. Bush, declaring she is embarrassed to be from the same country as him. The outspoken star was thrown out of a Las Vegas, Nevada, casino in 2004 after praising Michael Moore for his anti-Bush movie Fahrenheit 9/11.

Two years on she hasn't softened her views, echoing those of country music trio The Dixie Chicks. She says, "The Dixie Chicks said they were embarrassed he was from Texas. I'm embarrassed George Bush is from the United States. He's an idiot. He's enormously incompetent on both the domestic and international scenes."

She also defends her right to speak her mind: "Was it wrong for people like Peter, Paul And Mary or Joan Baez to speak out against racism? I think they educated a lot of people about something that was terribly unfair. Now the fact that we were lied to about the reasons for entering into war against Iraq and thousands of people have died - it's just as immoral as racism."