Iraq returns to centre stage in US election

Iraq and the war on terrorism remained at the forefront of the battle for the White House today.

Democratic challenger John Kerry vowed that as president he would “do everything in my power to keep your children and our country safe”.

But the Bush campaign launched a new advertising blitz, accusing Senator Kerry of having inconsistent policies on homeland security.

Meanwhile, the presidential challenger’s wife, Teresa Heinz Kerry, said she suspected that Osama bin Laden may be “captured” before the November election.

Mrs Kerry, the multi-millionaire heir to the Heinz food empire, speaking at a fund-raiser in Arizona, said: “I wouldn’t be surprised if he appeared in the next month.”

Some commentators took that as a cynical suggestion that the White House would announce the capture of bin Laden to give President George Bush a surge in popularity as the nation goes to the polls.

In Philadelphia, Mr Kerry unveiled his plan for winning the war on terrorism.

He vowed to re-focus on the capture of bin Laden, increase the number of intelligence agents overseas, build a better military, deny terrorists weapons and financing, and move against worldwide terrorist havens and recruitment centres.

Still recovering from a bout of laryngitis, Mr Kerry struggled through the speech, frequently coughing and taking sips of water.

Speaking to a newspaper earlier, Mr Kerry said Mr Bush’s decision to invade Iraq was a sign that the President was an extremist.

“I don’t view these people as conservatives. I actually view them as extreme, and I think their policies have been extreme,” he told the Columbus Dispatch in Ohio.

He said Mr Bush “diverted the real war on terror – which was Osama bin Laden and al-Qaida”.

He added that Mr Bush moved “almost obsessively” against Iraq “in a way that weakened our nation, overextended our armed forces, cost us 200 billion and created a breach in our oldest alliances”.

But Mr Kerry was facing an uphill struggle, speaking a day after Mr Bush was thanked for his work in Iraq by the country’s interim prime minister, Ayad Allawi.

Mr Allawi stood alongside Mr Bush outside the White House to offer an optimistic assessment of progress in the war-torn country.

At the same time, a new poll suggested Mr Bush had solidified his advantage among men during the last month and holds his highest ratings since January on job performance, the economy and Iraq.

With less than six weeks to go before the November 2 election, Mr Bush has a seven-point lead over his Democratic challenger – 52% to 45% – among likely voters, according to the Associated Press-Ipsos survey.

Meanwhile, the Bush campaign unveiled a new advert showing footage of Mr Kerry windsurfing, to the music of the Blue Danube.

Just as Mr Kerry changes direction on the water, viewers are told that he changes direction on policy.

The Kerry campaign called the ad “juvenile”.