by Olivier Knox
NEW YORK, Sept 2 (AFP) - US President George W. Bush, who waged wars in Iraq and Afghanistan after the September 11, 2001, attacks, urged voters Thursday to give him four more years to battle terrorism and improve the US economy.
"We have fought the terrorists across the earth -- not for pride, not for power, but because the lives of our citizens are at stake," Bush said in excerpts of his acceptance speech to the Republican national convention.
The president hoped his prime-time televised address would soothe worries about US job losses and chaos in Iraq and give him a clear edge over Democratic White House hopeful John Kerry two months before the November 2 election.
"This moment in the life of our country will be remembered. Generations will know if we kept our faith and kept our word. Generations will know if we seized this moment and used it to build a future of safety and peace. The freedom of many, and the future security of our nation, now depend on us," he said.
The speech also aimed to build on a week-long barrage of attacks, led by Vice President Dick Cheney, portraying Kerry as weak and fickle on national security and unfit to lead the war on terrorism.
"I believe this nation wants steady, consistent, principled leadership. That is why, with your help, we will win this election," the president said in the excerpts, which his campaign made public hours before the speech.
Aides familiar with the speech said Bush would argue that the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan will help defeat terrorists not just on the battlefield but also by transforming the Middle East.
The officials, who requested anonymity, said he would not mention the two surviving members of what he termed the "axis of evil," Iran and North Korea, in the address.
Bush and Kerry have been running neck-and-neck in most national polls, each with an unyielding base of supporters and ambitions to capture the sliver of undecided voters and key battleground states still up for grabs.
The Democrat's camp has been accusing Republicans of doing little over four years on health care, education, and the environment, and spurning discussion of concrete remedies at their convention in favor of attacking Kerry.
"There was an awful lot of focus and angry rhetoric about Senator Kerry," his running mate, Senator John Edwards, told CNN Thursday.
"It would be nice for them to have a little more anger about the five million people who have lost their health care coverage while president Bush has been in office, four million people who have fallen into poverty and almost two million who lost their private sector jobs," he said.
Bush launched the global war on terrorism in 2001 after Al-Qaeda killed some 3,000 people in attacks on the United States, which united the country behind the president and led to an outpouring of solidarity for the country abroad.
"We are staying on the offensive -- striking terrorists abroad -- so we do not have to face them here at home. And we are working to advance liberty in the broader Middle East, because freedom will bring a future of hope, and the peace we all want. And we will prevail," said Bush.
But Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden remains at large, and Bush has seen his approval ratings slide amid a rising death toll among US forces in Iraq and the failure to find the weapons of mass destruction at the core of his case for war, as well as job losses in key states since he took office.
On the domestic front, the president revived his "compassionate conservative" message -- which seduced moderate voters in the hotly disputed 2000 race -- and said he would seek to transform key institutions.
"Many of our most fundamental systems -- the tax code, health coverage, pension plans, worker training -- were created for the world of yesterday, not tomorrow," he said.
"We will transform these systems so that all citizens are equipped, prepared -- and thus truly free -- to make your own choices and pursue your own dreams," said the president.
"I am running for president with a clear and positive plan to build a safer world, and a more hopeful America. I am running with a compassionate conservative philosophy: that government should help people improve their lives, not try to run their lives," said Bush.