War Center Stage At Debate

President Bush and Sen. John Kerry headed back to the campaign trail Friday to try to convince voters they had won the debate over foreign policy and to renew the argument over whether going to war in Iraq had made the nation safer.

Three post-debate polls suggested voters who watched the policy-driven confrontation Thursday night were impressed by Kerry's performance. Most of those surveyed said he did better than Mr. Bush.

Kerry's running mate,

"Our military has done everything they've been asked to do, but because of the failures of this president, Iraq is a mess right now and getting worse," he said in an interview on CBS News'The Early Show. "The president never acknowledged last night the severity of the problem," he said.

Mr. Bush, however, believed he had effectively spelled out the strategy and shown the resolve with which he is fighting the war on terror, White House communications director

"He felt it was a clear opportunity for him to discuss two very different visions for fighting this war on terror," Bartlett told Early Show Co-Anchor Harry Smith.

"I think it's critically important that the American people understand that the first part of a mission is to believe in a mission, and I think Senator Kerry sent very mixed signals in that regard," he said.

When Kerry leveled some of his charges, Bush appeared irritated and scowled at times and, at other moments, glanced away in apparent disgust. Kerry often took notes when the president spoke. The television networks offered a split screen to viewers so they could see both men at the same time and watch their reactions.

The president knew he would be on camera during the entire debate and was aware that the networks had not agreed to show only the candidate who was speaking, Bush campaign spokeswoman Nicolle Devenish said. Regarding Mr. Bush's facial reactions, Devenish said: "The president reacted honestly. It showed the president really believes in his convictions."

From the first question, Kerry went on the offensive, accusing the president of leaving U.S. alliances around the world "in shatters" and later calling Iraq "this incredible mess." Mr. Bush said Kerry had voted to authorize the war he now criticizes. "That's not how a commander in chief acts," he said.

Less than five weeks before the election, Iraq dominated the debate on a day when a string of bombs killed 35 children and wounded scores of others in western Baghdad. Overall, more than 1,000 U.S. soldiers have died in Iraq.

Kerry summed up the Bush strategy for Iraq as "more of the same" and added: "This president has made, I regret to say, a colossal error of judgment. And judgment is what we look for in the president of the United States of America."

Mr. Bush acknowledged that not every American agrees with the decisions he's made. "But people know where I stand,"he said, suggesting they don't know where Kerry stands. "People out there listening know what I believe."

CBS News talked to uncommitted voters immediately after the debate, and found 43 percent said Kerry won the debate compared to 28 percent who went with the president.

But in even better news for Kerry, CBS News Correspondent Bill Plante reports his likeability scores rose dramatically, putting him essentially even with the president and ahead among women.

From Florida, Mr. Bush was heading out Friday to rallies in Pennsylvania and New Hampshire, two key battleground states. Kerry was spending the day campaigning in Florida, where the presidential race was decided four years ago.

In Thursday night's encounter at the University of Miami, both men drew heavily on oft-repeated lines from their campaign speeches but they faced each other directly across the same stage for the first time.

Mr. Bush criticized Kerry for saying Iraq was the wrong war at the wrong time in the wrong place. "What message does that send to our troops?" the president said. "Not a message a commander in chief gives."

Repeating a line he has used countless times to show his opponent is inconsistent, the president tweaked Kerry for saying he voted for an $87 billion spending bill for Iraq and Afghanistan before he voted against it.

Kerry shot back, "Well, you know, when I talked bout the $87 billion, I made a mistake in how I talk about the war. But the president made a mistake in invading Iraq. Which is worse?"

To Kerry's contention that he could summon broader international support for the war, Mr. Bush said, "They're not going to follow someone whose core convictions keep changing because of politics."

While Iraq was the dominant issue in the debate, there were also notable differences on North Korea and Iran, two nations suspected of pursuing nuclear weapons programs. Kerry urged that the United States hold direct bilateral talks with North Korea, but the president disagreed, calling Kerry's proposal "a big mistake" that would crush multinational talks and remove pressure from China on North Korea.

Kerry said North Korea has amassed more nuclear weapons during the Bush administration.