Bush to warn that Kerry will not keep US safe

As the US presidential campaign entered its final week today, George Bush rapidly revamped a campaign speech to accuse rival John Kerry of having a limited vision of the war on terror that will not keep America safe.

It was an attempt to call attention to the central argument of the Republican president’s re-election bid.

Asked in a TV interview today whether he has considered the fact that he could lose on November 2, President Bush replied, “I’m not there yet. I believe we’re going to win and I’m campaigning as if we are gong to win.”

Both candidates are focusing their efforts on fewer than a dozen states that remain highly competitive, with both camps making last-minute scheduling decisions to reflect realities on the ground.

While Kerry was in Philadelphia, where former President Bill Clinton was today campaigning for him, Bush headed to Colorado, another closely contested state, aimed at calling attention to the central argument of his re-election bid – that he is the best candidate to keep America safe.

“There will be new language. There are many different arguments to be made to make the same point,” White House communications director Dan Bartlett said of Bush’s remarks.

Asked today about the possibility of a terrorist attack on the United States before the election – something the administration has repeatedly warned the country about, Bush said, “We don’t have actionable intelligence to say there’s an attack, and of course if we did, we’d be moving heaven and earth to stop it.”

Bush once again defended his decision to go to war with Iraq.

“I calculated as best I could the cost of going to war. … It is a very, very heavy decision for the commander in chief. You can’t put a price tag on a person’s life,” Bush said. “If the commander in chief withdraws before the mission is completed, it’s too great a price.”

Bush said it was “essential that we succeed in Iraq … because if we do not succeed in Iraq …. The terrorists will rejoice.”

Kerry, in another TV interview, said Bush is a “likeable fellow” and a “great family man” but disagreed with “the choices he’s made.”

“I admire the way he stood up after 9/11 and brought the country together. But I disagree with the way he’s divided the nation since then,” he said of Bush.

“It’s been ideological. It’s been excessively partisan and political. And we need a president to bring America together. We really do."