President George W. Bush and Mr John Kerry traded sharp accusations on national security, taxes and jobs today, with the Democrat questioning his rival's credibility and fitness to be commander in chief.
Mr Bush claimed Mr Kerry's tax hikes for wealthy Americans would hurt small business owners and cripple their ability to create new jobs and claimed his opponent had been "consistently wrong" on the key national security issues of our time.
One week before the election, both candidates went on the offensive in the battleground state of Wisconsin as they tried to gain a late edge in a deadlocked race for the White House.
President George W. Bush
After taking months of pounding from Republicans on his fitness to lead America in dangerous times, Mr Kerry said Mr Bush had "failed in his fundamental obligation as commander in chief to make America as safe and secure as we should be."
He accused Mr Bush of trying to hide until after the election the news that 380 tons of powerful explosives disappeared from an Iraqi military installation after the US-led invasion in March 2003.
Citing reports the president would seek up to $75 billion more in emergency funds to pay for the war after the election, Mr Kerry said there was a pattern of deception on Iraq from an administration that refused to admit its mistakes. "He failed to secure Iraq and keep it from becoming what it is today - a haven for terrorists," Mr Kerry said in Wisconsin. "Mr President, what else are you being silent about? What else are you keeping from the American people? How much more will the American people have to pay?" he asked.
He called Vice President Dick Cheney "out of touch" for describing Iraq as "a remarkable success story" despite the steady diet of bad news there, including attacks on US troops, the murder of Iraqi policemen, kidnappings and beheadings. "They don't see it, they don't get it, they can't fix it," he said. "I can and I will.
Mr Bush, at a rally elsewhere in Wisconsin, renewed his questions about Mr Kerry's ability to fight the war on terror after the September 11th attacks on the United States, suggesting Mr Kerry wavered under political pressure.
He said Mr Kerry did not have the vision or backbone to lead the United States in Iraq or against al-Qaeda.
"On the largest national security issues of our time, he has been consistently wrong," Mr Bush said, citing Mr Kerry's opposition to the 1991 Gulf War and saying he opposed former President Ronald Reagan's stance against the Soviet Union. "History has shown that Senator Kerry was right, then wrong, then briefly right, then wrong again," Mr Bush said.
"Even when you might not agree with me, you know where I stand, what I believe and what I intend to do. On good days and on bad days, whether the polls are up or the polls are down, I am determined to win this war on terror," Mr Bush said.
Mr Bush attacked Mr Kerry's pledge to raise taxes on Americans making more than $200,000 a year and said it would hurt small business owners and entrepreneurs. "My opponent believes the economy grows by growing the size of the federal government," Mr Bush said. "I believe the economy grows by growing the size of the coffers of small businesses."