Keeping It Clear.(ISSUES & INSIGHTS)(EDITORIALS)(Editorial)

Leadership: President Bush has stood behind a simple, powerful idea since 9-11 -- that we are at war, and we will win. He can leave the nuances to Sen. John Kerry.

Bush has the gifts of a CEO, not a salesman. He's decisive and resolute in action but not always adept at explanations.

Just as the Republican National Convention was getting under way, for instance, NBC aired a taped interview in which the president seemed to say that the war on terrorism cannot be won.

The Democrats pounced on this "defeatism" and the White House had to come up with some kind of explanation -- that Bush wasn't talking about victory "in the conventional sense."

So much for being subtle. Nuance isn't Bush's strength, and that's just as well. He should leave the muddling of messages to Kerry, who is a master of that art.

But Monday night's events at the convention reminded us that Bush does have a strong case, and that he has first-rate advocates on his side. Sen. John McCain gave a concise and cogent defense of the Iraq War, noting that keeping the status quo of Saddam Hussein's rule ultimately would have been more dangerous than going to war to depose him.

Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, for the benefit of those whose memories of 9-11 might be dimming, explained what the war on terror was all about and why Bush was the man to fight it.