Posted on 09/01/2004 5:42:11 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Vice President Dick Cheney (news - web sites), taking center stage at the Republican convention on Wednesday, said the November election was a "defining moment" when Americans would make a fundamental choice about the country's long-term security.
Cheney said in published excerpts of his evening speech that President Bush (news - web sites)'s first term had amounted to "years of achievement" but there were vital differences between Bush and his Democratic challenger, Massachusetts Sen. John Kerry (news - web sites).
"Moments come along in history when leaders must make fundamental decisions about how to confront a long-term challenge abroad and how best to keep the American people secure. This nation has reached another of those defining moments," Cheney said in the brief prepared remarks released ahead of his speech.
"On the question of America's role in the world, the differences between Senator Kerry and President Bush are the sharpest, and the stakes for the country are the highest."
Kerry, making an appearance before the nation's largest veterans' group, offered a harsh critique of Bush's leadership on the war and what Kerry said was a failure to make any plans for peace in Iraq (news - web sites).
"When it comes to Iraq, it's not that I would have done one thing differently, I would have done everything differently," Kerry said in Nashville, Tennessee, in a speech to the American Legion.
The Republican Party's nomination of Bush for a second four-year term was made official on Wednesday, setting up a two-month race to the Nov. 2 election that polls show is essentially a dead heat. Bush has gained ground on Kerry in recent weeks and taken a slight lead in several surveys.
The president has made his leadership after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks a centerpiece of his re-election campaign, and Republicans have reminded voters of his war on terror and praised the invasion of Iraq throughout the convention.
"I will never relent in defending America, whatever it takes," Bush told a campaign rally in Columbus, Ohio, after reminding supporters of the moment when he stood in the rubble of the World Trade Center after the attacks and vowed to fight back.
But Kerry, a decorated Vietnam War veteran, said Bush had failed to prepare for a post-war Iraq or secure the country's borders against outside insurgents. He said the president's go-it-alone approach had increased the burden on the U.S. military and budget.
Bush's campaign replied that Kerry "ran out of credibility" when he voted to authorize the war in Iraq and then voted against an $87 billion military spending bill to support U.S. troops.
"The only way to keep track of his position on Iraq is to follow which position benefits him politically," Bush campaign spokesman Steve Schmidt said.
HUMAN CHAIN
About 5,000 people formed a symbolic unemployment line from Wall Street to the Madison Square Garden convention site to highlight the jobs lost under Bush as protests continued on the third day of the convention.
Security inside the hall was breached when AIDS (news - web sites) activists briefly interrupted a speech by White House chief of staff Andrew Card to young Republicans, including Bush's twin daughters.
After Bush's campaign appearance in Ohio he headed to New York, where his visit with firefighters and supporters in Queens will be beamed into the convention hall before he returns to his hotel to watch Cheney's speech.
Cheney, a powerful adviser and supporter of the Iraq war within the administration but a reluctant campaigner, will get a chance to make his case for the war to a broad audience with his address.
The appearance will give many Americans their first extended view since 2000 of Cheney, whose support for war and past ties to Halliburton and the oil industry have made him a lightning rod for Democratic critics.
The convention formally nominated Cheney for a second four-year term as vice president on Wednesday, shortly after concluding the roll call of states to nominate Bush. The president will give his acceptance speech on Thursday.
Sen. Zell Miller (news, bio, voting record) of Georgia, a Democrat who is backing Bush, planned a sharp attack on Kerry in the convention's keynote address preceding Cheney's appearance.
"John Kerry wants to re-fight yesterday's war. George Bush (news - web sites) believes we have to fight today's war and be ready for tomorrow's challenges," Miller said in prepared remarks. "George Bush is committed to providing the kind of forces it takes to root out terrorists."
Explaining his switch of loyalties, Miller said "today's Democratic leaders see America as an occupier, not a liberator."
Democrats attacked Cheney for his ties to energy giant Halliburton and to special interests, and decried the criticism of Kerry by Republican speakers at the convention.
"This has been a very negative, mean-spirited campaign. They just want to tear down John Kerry," said Democratic Party chief Terry McAuliffe. "It's no mystery to us, they don't have anything positive to say."
Senators Rick Santorum (R-PA), (L) and Zell Miller (D-GA) point at each other as they do a walk through on the stage at the Republican National Convention in New York September 1, 2004. Miller delivers the keynote address later tonight. (Brian Snyder/Reuters)
I feel a Zot comin' on...
Nevada delegate, boxing referee Joe Cortez, of Las Vegas, has a pair of boxing gloves adorned with the image of Vice President Dick Cheney (news - web sites) on the third day of the Republican National Convention Wednesday, Sept. 1, 2004, in New York. Chrney is speaking Wednesday night. (AP Photo/Charles Dharapak)
Texas delegate Rick Neudorff shows off a pair of 'Kerry Flip-Flops' making fun of Democratic presidential nominee Senator John Kerry (news - web sites) (D-MA) as Neudorff stands on the floor of the Republican National Convention before the start of the third day of proceedings at Madison Square Garden in New York City, September 1, 2004. Republican delegates have found several ways to mock the Democratic presidential candidate with buttons, signs and attire as the convention's speakers repeatedly attack Kerry's record and positions from the podium. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton US ELECTION
Independent presidential hopeful Ralph Nader (news - web sites) is considering legal action after he failed to make it on the Massachusetts ballot for November's elections, a campaign aide said on September 1, 2004. In order to qualify for the state's Nov. 2 ballot, Nader needed 10,000 certified signatures, but had only 8,132 by the deadline last night, according to William Galvin, Secretary of the Commonwealth in Massachusetts. Nader is seen in New York August 31. Photo by Brian Snyder/Reuters
U.S President George W. Bush (news - web sites) and golf legend Jack Nicklaus (L) laugh together at a campaign rally in Columbus, Ohio, September 1, 2004. Nicklaus introduced the President to speak at the event. Bush's visit Thursday marks the final stop of the president's nine-state journey to the Republican National Convention in New York City. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque US ELECTION
President Bush (news - web sites)'s dog, Barney is seen in a Republican National Committee (news - web sites) video presented to the delegates on the third day of the Republican National Convention on Wednesday, Sept. 1, 2004, at Madison Square Garden in New York. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Alvin Portee of South Carolina wears a hat with a picture of Abraham Lincoln on the third night of the 2004 Republican National Convention at Madison Square Garden in New York, September 1, 2004. REUTERS/Brian Snyder US ELECTION
Wyoming delegates Jayne and Al Hilde wait for the evening speakers to begin at the Republican National Convention in Madison Square Garden Wednesday, Sept. 1, 2004 in New York. Wyoming is Vice President Dick Cheney (news - web sites), who speaks Wednesday night, home state (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
Colorado delegate Sylvia Morgan-Smith wears a wolf hat with a message referring to U.S. President George W. Bush (news - web sites) during the third night of the 2004 Republican National Convention at Madison Square Garden in New York City, September 1, 2004. U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney (news - web sites) steps into the convention spotlight to defend the Iraq (news - web sites) war and take aim at Democrat challenger and nominee Senator John Kerry (news - web sites), who has blasted the Bush administration's war failures. REUTERS/Robert Galbraith US ELECTION
Texas delegate Pat Peale wears a bandaid with a purple heart on it on her chin during the first day of the Republican National Convention in New York August 30, 2004. Democrats and Democratic National Committee (news - web sites) Chairman Terry McAulliffe reacted angrily after seeing Peale on national television appearing to mock the Purple Heart ribbons awarded to Democratic presidential nominee Senator John Kerry (news - web sites) in Vietnam. Peale was quoted as saying she had gotten a purple heart earlier in the day 'swimming a river I think it was.' REUTERS/Robert Galbraith
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