If you're tough on President George W. Bush, you're soft on terrorism. Denounce the Iraq war, and you're retreating from terrorists.

That's the message the White House and its political allies want Americans to get from the Republican Party's first television commercial of the 2004 campaign. The ad, airing briefly in Iowa and perhaps other early voting states, sets the tone for what is certain to be a bitter, election-year debate as both parties seek political gain from the war on terror.

The commercial shows Bush delivering the last State of the Union address as criticisms flash across the screen. ``Some are now attacking the president for attacking the terrorists,'' reads one charge. Another says: ``Some calls for us to retreat, putting our national security in the hands of others.''

Democratic presidential hopefuls, including some who supported the Iraq war, are second-guessing Bush's preemptive attack on Saddam Hussein's regime and US homeland security policies. They hope the daily dose of death from Iraq turns what has been Bush's greatest political strength _ his fight against terror _ into a weakness.

``If George Bush wants to make this election about national security, I have three words for him he'll understand"Democratic rival Howard Dean turned Bush's ad into a political opportunity. In a letter to supporters Friday, the front-running candidate asked for $360,000 to pay for a response ad that will tout his opposition to the war.

``We need to show that we're not going to allow the administration to wage an air war on the American people,'' Dean said.

The Democrats' national security pitch becomes imperative if the economy continues to rebound and Bush secures a legislative victory on Medicare, the nation's health care plan for the elderly and disabled.

Bush has his own angle. Almost immediately after Sept. 11, his political advisers recognized that the war on terror gave Bush an opportunity to blunt questions about his presidential stature. Polls showed the nation divided over his job performance when terrorists struck nine months into his presidency. Bush's ratings soared, and initial planning memos for his re-election drive listed terrorism as a top issue.

White House officials touted combatting terrorism to Republican strategists, who in the 2002 midterm elections successfully challenged the commitment of Democratic candidates.

But two months before Democrats begin selecting their presidential nominee and a year before Bush faces re-election, there is no easy way to handicap the political impact of the Iraq war or the broader fight against terror.

A new Los Angeles Times poll shows a majority of voters disapprove of the way Bush has handled Iraq, and don't think the outcome there has been worth the number of lives lost. Nevertheless, the opinion survey finds that voters trust Bush to make the right decisions in Iraq, and they give him high marks for his handling of the war on terrorism.

The Republican ad highlights a division within the Democratic Party between those who opposed the war and those who are struggling to explain their support to a skeptical, largely anti-war base.

``I'm not going to let them steal the concept of patriotism like they stole the election in 2000,'' retired Army Gen. Wesley Clark, fiercely opposed to the war after belying some ambiguity early in his campaign, said in South Carolina Friday.

Kerry, Rep. Dick Gephardt and Sen. Joe Lieberman _ all of whom backed the war resolution _ accused Bush of playing politics with the issue.

The timing of the ad puzzled some observers, who wondered whether Bush was pushing the political equivalent of the panic button. Anxious about his poll ratings, Republicans have pressured the White House to be more aggressive in the president's defense.

Others speculated that Bush was testing the waters with an ad that will be viewed by few voters. He's measuring the political backlash that comes with questioning Democrats' commitment to fighting terror.

Michael Dimmock, research director for the Pew Research Center, said Bush is playing to his strength.

``The war on terrorism has been Bush's strong suit all along,'' he said. ``Still is.''

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