by Marc Carnegie
NEW YORK, Aug 31 (AFP) - Republicans on Tuesday nominated President George W. Bush for a second term and called on action hero turned politician Arnold Schwarzenegger to put Hollywood muscle behind his election drive.
The formal nomination, captured on day two of the Republican national convention in New York, puts Bush on the ballot to do battle with Democrat John Kerry in November's election.
The president became the party's official candidate when the key swing state of Pennsylvania cast 75 votes for him, putting him over the threshhold of 1,255 votes needed.
While a formality, the move pushed the convention towards its climax -- Bush's acceptance speech on Thursday -- and set the evening's jubilant tone.
Schwarzenegger was to add Hollywood magic to the mix when he takes the stage to praise the president's handling of the September 11, 2001 attacks.
The megastar with the giant biceps and the popular appeal to match swept into town and tweaked his most famous movie line to bolster Bush's election drive.
"America is back! Back from the attack on our homeland, back from the attack on our economy, back from the attack on our way of life," he said in advance excerpts of his much-awaited speech.
"We're back because of the perseverance, character and leadership of the 43rd president of the United States, George W. Bush," he said.
Schwarzenegger's differences from Bush and other party hard-liners on issues such as abortion keep him out of the Republican mainstream, but have made him a key draw in what has been a closely-fought election duel.
With polls showing Bush and Kerry in a neck-and-neck race, Republicans have been keen to appeal to the political centre just nine weeks before the election.
Staying away from the shoals of their differences, Schwarzenegger instead touched on his history as a self-made man, rising from poverty in Austria to become a bodybuilding champion, international movie star and US politician.
"In this country, it doesn't make any difference where you were born," said Schwarzenegger, known around the world for his roles in "Terminator" and "Conan the Barbarian."
"It doesn't make any difference if, like me, you couldn't even speak English until you were in your 20s. America gave me opportunities, and my immigrant dreams came true," he said.
"That's why I believe in this country, that's why I believe in this party -- and that's why I believe in this president," he said.
First Lady Laura Bush was also set to address the party gala, which was launched on Monday with a cornerstone message -- that only her husband has the backbone to defend America after September 11.
"We are living in the midst of the most historic struggle my generation has ever known. The stakes are so high," the first lady said in advance excerpts of her speech.
"I want to talk about the issue that I believe is most important for my own daughters, for all our families, and for our future -- George's work to protect our country and defeat terror so that all children can grow up in a more peaceful world," she said.
The Republican party ignored Democratic criticism about trying to make political capital out of the worst-ever attack on the United States, repeatedly using September 11 on Monday to point to Bush's strength and leadership.
Bush was out on the campaign trail on Tuesday, trying to limit the damage from his comment the previous day that he didn't think it was possible to win the war on terrorism -- which has been the centrepiece of his reelection bid.
"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 in a speech to the largest US veterans group, the American Legion, in Nashville, Tennessee.
"We may never sit down at a peace table, but make no mistake about it: We are winning and we will win," the president said.
In much the same way that Democrats hinged their own convention one month ago on Kerry's Vietnam war service, the Republicans appeared to have placed their bets on fears of terrorism and satisfaction with Bush's handling of it.
"Of course we can talk about it," former New York mayor Rudoph Giuliani, who rubbished Kerry as politically fickle in a convention speech on Monday, told CNN.
"It would be like Lincoln running for reelection in 1864 and not talking about the Civil War," he said.
Republicans opted to hold their convention at Madison Square Garden in New York, just a few miles (kilometres) from the vacant site where the World Trade Center towers stood before the attacks.
On Tuesday, at least 1,000 anti-Bush demonstrators demonstrated at the site. Police made several arrests after the demonstrators, who did not have a march permit, ignored warnings not to step into the street or cross it.