Kerry 'narrow victor' in first debate

John Kerry emerged a narrow winner from his first live debate with President George Bush.

That was the verdict of most American commentators on last night's televised clash, the first of three key debates that could determine who wins next month's election.

Political commentators agreed Democrat challenger Senator Kerry had scored a narrow victory over Mr Bush, but that neither-candidate had come close to a knockout blow. The debate was watched by 50 million voters and three opinion polls showed they preferred Mr Kerry's performance by nine to 15 per cent.

The New York Times said that Mr Kerry was "cool, respectful, rational" and "appeared to have accomplished his primary goal for the evening: establishing himself as a plausible commander in chief." The conservative New York Post agreed, saying Kerry "seemed far better prepared than Bush". It noted that the president "often repeated himself and at times seemed at a loss for words".

On its website, Time magazine declared the debate "a draw and maybe a win for Kerry". Expresident Bill Clinton's former press secretary Joe Lockhart - now a Kerry adviser - agreed the consensus was a draw. But the Dallas Morning News said that Mr Bush, notorious for his verbal fumbles, had won "by not losing".

Both men hope to use the debates to swing undecided voters who will determine what is expected to be a close election. For Mr Kerry, trailing in opinion polls, it was a chance to dispel Republican claims that he has "flip-flopped" on major issues,

and show he can offer decisive leadership.

The pair clashed over the war in Iraq and America's defence against terrorism. Mr Kerry branded the Iraq invasion a "colossal error of judgment". The President pointed out that his rival had once also proclaimed "the world is better off without Saddam Hussein".

With Iraq dominating the 90-minute debate, Mr Kerry repeatedly called the war a diversion from the struggle against terrorism. He said: "Iraq was not even close to the centre of the war on terror before the President invaded it."

He accused Mr Bush of ignoring growing US casualties and violent unrest in Iraq, saying: "This President, I don't know if he really sees what's happening over there."

Replying, Mr Bush painted his rival as a man who changed his mind so often that he was unfit to be commander-in-chief of the armed forces. The President said: "He voted to authorise the use of force and now says it's the wrong war at the wrong time. I don't think you can lead if you say wrong war, wrong time, wrong place. What message does that send to our troops?"

Mr Kerry said: "I made a mistake in how I talk about the war, but the President made a mistake in invading Iraq. Which is worse?"

He accused the President of squandering money that could have been used for better security measures in the US on a tax cut for the rich. Mr Bush hit back: "I wake up every day thinking about how best to protect America. That's my job."

But despite the disagreements, the debate was short on real verbal fireworks and long on predictable soundbites crafted by the candidates' teams of speechwriters and political advisers.