Romney, Kerry spar over fight on terror

WASHINGTON -- The terrorist attack foiled by British authorities prompted a battle of words yesterday between a pair of presidential contenders from Massachusetts, with Governor Mitt Romney lashing out at Senator John F. Kerry for suggesting that the war in Iraq has harmed the nation's security.

Kerry, the Democrats' 2004 presidential nominee, seized on news of the disrupted plot as a ``stark reminder" that Osama bin Laden remains at large and said it shows that Al Qaeda has ``grown in strength" since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

``Osama bin Laden and Al Qaeda have succeeded in isolating the United States," Kerry, a Democrat, said during a conference call organized on behalf of Patrick Murphy, a Democratic candidate in a Pennsylvania House race. ``Afghanistan and Pakistan are where the fight against Al Qaeda is, not in Iraq."

Asked about Kerry's comments during an appearance on the MSNBC cable network, Romney blasted Kerry. The governor said the senator failed to recognize that the United States is locked in a long-term war against terrorists and that Iraq is a central front.

``I think it shows a complete lack of understanding of the kind of enemy that we're facing," said Romney, a Republican. ``This is not a small group of wackos in the hills that all we have to do is go find one person and it suddenly goes away."

The exchange was one of the few times that Romney and Kerry, both of whom are contemplating 2008 presidential runs, have tangled publicly on a national issue since Kerry lost his White House run to George Bush in 2004.

Their comments were made as members of both parties scrambled for a political edge following Tuesday's arrests in what authorities called a well-planned, sophisticated terrorist scheme to destroy jetliners in midflight from London to the United States.

Republicans cast the arrests as evidence that President Bush's aggressive antiterrorism policies are working. Democrats pointed to gaps in US transportation and border security and missteps in Iraq to argue that the nation is more vulnerable than ever.

In the MSNBC interview, Romney avoided a question about the president's decision to attend a fund-raiser near his Texas ranch as the details of the terrorist plot unfolded yesterday. Romney skipped a political event in Michigan on Thursday evening because of the arrests and subsequent disruptions at the airport. Rather than defend the president, Romney flipped the question, accusing Democrats of using the sobering news from London to score political points.

Now is not the time for ``the politics of attacking America or attacking our policies," Romney said. ``Surely there's going to be a debate on what's the right policy to defeat the jihadists. But this isn't the time to be attacking the president. It's not the time to be engaging in partisan sniping."

In turn, Kerry's communications director, David Wade, questioned the governor's knowledge of issues related to Iraq and terrorism.

``Mitt Romney's command of national security is about as real as the weapons of mass destruction in Iraq," Wade said.

The arrests also continued to spill over into the Senate race in Connecticut, where Democratic nominee Ned Lamont is headed for a November rematch with Senator Joseph I. Lieberman, the three-term incumbent he defeated in last week's primary and who is now running as an independent.

Lamont's campaign manager, Tom Swan, blasted Lieberman for suggesting on Thursday that leaving Iraq would be ``a tremendous victory by the same people who wanted to blow up these planes."

``Joe Lieberman's fear campaign is off to a quick start, and it won't be long until Republican money starts completely funding his campaign," Swan said in a fund-raising appeal sent yesterday.

Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid, who backed Lamont after he won the Democratic primary on Tuesday, also rejected Lieberman's remarks.

``Connecticut voters certainly aren't supporting terrorists," Reid said. ``Joe has to play on the field of Connecticut; this is Connecticut politics. The people of this country and the people of Connecticut want a change in direction."