Kerry can't keep US safe, warns Bush

US PRESIDENT George W Bush stepped up his attack on election rival John Kerry yesterday, suggesting the Democratic Senator could not keep the US safe from terrorists.

The tough talk came less than two weeks before the election and as Mr Kerry moved three points ahead of Mr Bush in a new opinion poll.

Mr Kerry accused Mr Bush of "trying to appeal to people's fear instinct".

Speaking in the crucial swing state of Pennsylvania, Mr Bush said security was the top priority for the US.

"Americans will go to the polls in a time of war and ongoing threat to our country," he said.

"All progress on every other issue depends on the safety of our citizens.

"The enemies who killed thousands of innocent people are still dangerous and determined to strike us again."

Mr Bush said his opponent, a senator from Massachusetts, did not understand the terrorist threat.

He reminded voters one of Mr Kerry's foreign policy advisers compared the war on terror to the metaphorical "war on poverty".

Mr Bush said: "I've got news. Anyone who thinks we're fighting a metaphor does not understand the enemy we face and has no idea how to win the war and keep America secure."

Mr Bush asked what Mr Kerry thought terrorists like Jordanian militant Abu Musab al-Zarqawi would be doing if they were not fighting coalition forces in Iraq.

"Opening a small business?" he asked sarcastically.

Mr Bush, once again, defended his decision to oust Saddam Hussein.

At the same time, the Bush team released a new campaign commercial questioning Senator Kerry's stance on national security.

The advert shows wolves prowling in a dense forest as a narrator says: "Weakness attracts those who are waiting to do America harm."

But Mr Kerry countered the accusations in a television interview..

"We're at war and (President Bush) is scaring people," Mr Kerry said.

"He is spending a lot of time trying to appeal to people's fear instinct.

"If our base comes out and people vote for health care, if they vote for jobs, if they vote for justice and fairness, if they come out and vote for the things that matter in their lives, we're going to win."

Meanwhile, a new opinion poll by Ispos Public Affairs for the Associated Press found Mr Kerry led Mr Bush by 49% to 46%.

But the poll has a margin of error of 3%, making the result a statistical dead heat.