Defence and foreign policy were the themes of the second day of the Republican Convention yesterday as distinguished war veterans warned that the armed forces would have to be updated and kept ready for overseas interventions.
Former Gulf War commander Gen Norman Schwarzkopf and former Vietnam War hero Senator John McCain addressed the delegates on defence needs. The general's speech was transmitted by video from the deck of the battleship New Jersey docked nearby.
Ms Condoleezza Rice, the chief foreign policy adviser to Gov George Bush, told delegates that he was well qualified to serve as president and that he had an inspiring vision for the future role of the US in the world.
Mr Bush, who is campaigning in key states as he makes his way to Philadelphia for his acceptance speech tomorrow night, has taken issue with President Clinton over his criticisms of the Republican goals.
And the sniping between the two sides reached a new level when delegates to the convention were delighted at a pointed reference by Mrs Laura Bush to Mr Clinton's behaviour in the Monica Lewinsky scandal.
Mrs Bush said parents and grandfathers were showing her husband pictures of their children and saying "I'm counting on you . . . I want my son and daughter to respect the President of the United States."
Mrs Bush said "when Americans vote this November, they will be looking for someone to uphold that high honour and trust."
Mr Bush, who was campaigning in West Virginia, said he found it "amazing that the President of the United States would spend time trying to be a political pundit".
He was replying to criticism by Mr Clinton that the Republican proposals on healthcare are just "a pretty package". The President said "if they wrap it tight enough, no one will open it before Christmas."
He accused the President of being "desperate to have his legacy intact by getting Al Gore elected".
In recent elections, there has usually been an unspoken commitment that one party will not make high-level attacks on the other during its convention. But the Democrats have also chosen this week to launch a series of TV ads critical of Republican policies and comparing them unfavourably to those of Mr Gore.
President Clinton also expressed horror at the revelation that Mr Dick Cheney, the running mate of Mr Bush, had voted against a motion calling for the release from jail of Mr Nelson Mandela during the 1980s.
It was a good thing, Mr Clinton said, that "nobody listened to the vote that was cast by the Republican nominee for vice-president. He did get out of jail and he went on to do a great job for America."
Mr Cheney has tried to explain his vote by saying that the resolution also praised the African National Congress which was seen as dominated by communists.
Democrats have also attacked Mr Cheney for saying that he had "other priorities" during the Vietnam War when he secured three exemptions from the draft to continue his studies. But Republicans have retorted that Mr Clinton avoided the draft.
Mr Cheney will be closely watched tonight when he makes his acceptance speech to the convention. Republicans will hope he can defend his ultra-conservative voting record when he was in Congress so as to stifle Democratic criticism.
About 80 demonstrators were arrested last night for disrupting traffic in the centre of Philadelphia. Two police officers were reported to have been injured.