NEW YORK, 17 July 2003 — Democratic presidential contender John Kerry said yesterday President George W. Bush suffers from a “dangerous gap in credibility” on national security and questioned if the United States was safer since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
“It is clear that a dangerous gap in credibility has developed between President Bush’s tough rhetoric and timid policies which don’t do nearly enough to protect Americans from danger,” Kerry said in remarks prepared for delivery at a veterans’ hall in the Bronx.
“And with each passing day, Americans are learning that we also face an intelligence gap. Americans should be able to trust that what the president tells them is true,” the four-term Massachusetts senator said.
Kerry and the other Democrats vying for the right to challenge Bush in 2004 have toughened their criticism of the Bush administration over Iraq amid accusations the United States exaggerated intelligence on Iraq’s weapons to justify going to war.
He said Bush had “stalled” investigations into the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks in New York and Washington, and the administration “is still trying to conceal what happened.”
Kerry also attacked Bush’s dedication to safety at home, saying he was “big on bluster and short on action” for failing to provide police and firefighters with the resources needed to respond to domestic attacks.
“Americans have a right to ask, ‘Are we safer today than we were on Sept. 11?’” he asked.
