The incumbent has made a smooth slide from 9/11 to Iraq, barely hiccuping over the missing links between Al Qaeda and Saddam Hussein, skewed intelligence and the absence of wmd. The Kerry commandos watch in disbelief but instead of mounting a raid they bicker over tactics. Against the onslaught of Bush's master strategist Karl Rove, Kerry's message is muddled, messy and mired in deep nuance of Washingtonspeak. The Bushies have a clear distilled one: Our guy is tough and plays hardball with terrorists. Bush leads Kerry by 27 per cent on national security and sails from one campaign stop to another answering such profound questions as "Do you like broccoli?" from hand-picked supporters.
