by Olivier Knox
NASHVILLE, Tennessee, Aug 31 (AFP) - Courting veterans and farmers, US President George W. Bush on Tuesday promised "we will win" the war on terrorism one day after a broadcast in which he said a conventional victory was impossible.
Bush's speech here to the largest US veterans group, the American Legion, aimed to repair any election-year damage from his comment that "I don't think you can win it," meaning the global conflict against extremist violence.
"We meet today at a time of war for our country -- a war we did not start, yet one that we will win," Bush said here. "We may never sit down at a peace table, but make no mistake about it: We are winning and we will win."
Bush also assailed Democratic White House hopeful John Kerry as an unsteady leader who has changed his mind on crucial foreign policy issues like the war in Iraq.
But the president spent most of his day on the defensive after telling NBC television, on being asked whether the United States could win the war on terrorism: "I don't think you can win it."
"But I think you can create conditions so that those who use terror as a tool are less acceptable in parts of the world," said Bush, who has made the conflict his signature issue ahead of the November 2 elections.
Democrats had pounced on the remarks as a sign of defeatism, while White House aides scrambled to explain that Bush was merely revisiting his belief that the unconventional "war on terror" will not end with a peace treaty.
Even after Bush's remarks here, Kerry spokesman Phil Singer said in a statement that "this president has gone from mission accomplished to mission miscalculated to mission impossible on the war on terror."
"As we saw yesterday, he's clearly got real doubts about his ability to do so -- and with good reason," said Singer.
In a radio interview later with conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh, Bush blamed poor phrasing for the flap over his comments, saying: "I probably needed to be a little more articulate."
"In a conventional war there would be a peace treaty or there would be a moment where somebody would sit on the side and say we quit. That's not the kind of war we're in, and that's what I was saying," said Bush.
In his speech here, Bush also sought to hammer home his message that Kerry, a decorated Vietnam War veteran who will address the American Legion on Wednesday, would be an unsteady military leader.
A day after warning that Kerry would "nationalize health care" -- the senator has not proposed doing so -- Bush mocked Kerry's opposition to a plan to redeploy thousands of US troops in Asia and Europe.
The president quoted his rival as endorsing the plan on August 1 and saying "there are great possibilities open to us, but this administration has very little imagination."
"Well, it takes a lot of imagination to come out against the position you took just 17 days earlier," the president countered, drawing laughter from the friendly crowd.
Kerry aides say they principally object to the planned removal of US troops from near the North Korean border, saying any such redeployment ought to be contingent on concessions from Pyongyang.
Bush also drew on his oft-repeated accusation that Kerry voted against an 87-billion-dollar emergency spending plan for US troops in Iraq and Afghanistan.
"The legislation provided funding for body armor and vital equipment, hazard pay, health benefits, ammunition, fuel and spare parts. It was important funding," he said. "My opponent chose to vote 'no' on that vital legislation."
Kerry voted in favor of a Democratic version of the legislation, and Bush threatened to veto the legislation unless lawmakers removed a provision that would have required Iraq to pay back some reconstruction aid.
Bush mocked his rival for calling the vote "a complicated matter," and drew cheers with the punch line: "There's nothing complicated about supporting our troops in combat."
Later, Bush traveled to Iowa for the largest US farm show, and was to introduce First Lady Laura Bush via teleconference for her speech at the Republican national convention in New York City.