Kerry And Bush Do Davenport

President Bush and rival John Kerry campaigned Wednesday in the same crucially important Iowa town at dueling campaign events within three blocks of each other.

Mr. Bush held a campaign rally along the banks of the Mississippi River while Kerry attended an economic summit where he listened to stories of manufacturing job losses in the state, which have totaled more than 26,000 since Mr. Bush took office.

Both men are locked in a fierce struggle for the edge in swing states like Iowa, which Al Gore carried by less than 5,000 votes in 2000. Recent polls show Mr. Bush and Kerry running neck and neck in Iowa.

The president predicted he would win in November because his administration has improved the economy and bolstered national security.

"The other folks talk a good game. We deliver," the president told thousands of cheering supporters.

Mr. Bush cited the state's relatively low jobless rate, 4.3 percent in June, which has consistently been below the national average, which was 5.6 percent in June. He said that since his presidency began, he has opened up markets overseas for Iowa farmers and has lowered their taxes.

"I have made the success of Iowa farmers and ranchers a priority, and America is better off for it," the president said.

Mr. Bush said his efforts in the war on terrorism, both in Iraq and Afghanistan, have "made America safer."

Kerry, meanwhile, took advantage of the proximity of his rival. The Democratic standard-bearer said it was great that he and Mr. Bush were campaigning in the same city at the same time.

He took a shot at the president's campaign slogan that the country has turned the corner.

Noting the president was just a few blocks away, Kerry told an Iowa audience that Mr. Bush could join the summit "for a great discussion about America's future if he were really willing to just turn a corner."

Earlier, Kerry shook hands with construction workers who are building a new museum and talked to them about jobs and health insurance.

Kerry told the gathering that the Bush campaign has failed to lower health-care costs, and has mismanaged the nation's finances. Some Iowa business leaders, who voted for Mr. Bush four years ago, said administration policies were hurting the brand value of American goods overseas.

This was the president's fourth trip to Iowa this year. State Republicans said they were not surprised that the president is in a dead heat with Kerry in the state.

"After what happened in 2000, with the election going to the Supreme Court, that hardened many people's attitudes," former Iowa state Republican chairman Michael Mahaffey said. "Democratic Party activists have been very disgruntled and they want to make sure they do everything they can to make sure that George Bush is defeated."

Fresh off his Boston nominating convention with a unified party, Kerry has been taking his campaign to Republican strongholds from Newburgh, N.Y., to Harrisburg, Pa., to Grand Rapids, Mich.

The Massachusetts senator is trying to win independent and GOP voters by stressing values, fiscal discipline, middle-class tax cuts and even his love of hunting and fishing. As he campaigns in conservative-leaning areas, Kerry often asks the crowds to forget he's running as a Democrat.