Bush mocks Kerry

2004-09-27 22:17

Springfield - Honing lines of attack before the first debate of the 2004 White House race, President George W Bush said Democrat John Kerry shifted positions on Iraq so often he "could spend 90 minutes debating himself".

"Later this week I'll have the chance of debating my opponent.

"It's a little tough to prepare because he keeps changing positions on the war on terror," Bush told supporters in this crucial state.

"He said it was the right decision to go into Iraq. Now he calls it the wrong war," Bush said at the Midwest livestock and expo centre.

"He could spend 90 minutes debating himself.

"You cannot lead when people do not know where you stand," said the president, who had made charges that Kerry was fickle on key national security issues, a centrepiece of his campaign ahead of the November 2 elections.

Bringing al-Qaeda 'to justice'

Bush, who faces his first of three televised debates with Kerry on Thursday, also touted the death of a top al-Qaeda member, Amjad Farooqi, in Pakistan, as a sign of progress in the global war on terrorism.

The president tied Farooqi, who is said to have masterminded attempts to kill Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, to the grisly slaying of US reporter Daniel Pearl.

"One by one we're finding these people," said Bush.

"We're working with friends and allies to bring al-Qaeda to justice.

"Seventy-five percent of their leadership has been brought to justice."

- AFP