Bush suggests question of safety from terror `up in the air'.(Chicago Tribune)

Byline: Rick Pearson

ALAMOGORDO, N.M. _ President Bush acknowledged in a television interview that the question of whether the country can ever be fully safe from terrorism "is up in the air," but he assured voters in a key swing state Sunday that his re-election would keep them safe.

For much of the campaign, Bush has been hitting Democrat John Kerry for being inconsistent in his comments and votes on Iraq. But Bush's latest comments prompted a rebuke from Kerry, and one aide to the Democrat said Bush was "schizophrenic" on the terrorism issue.

The president, in an interview taped with Fox News Channel's "Hannity & Colmes," that is to air Monday, conceded the difficulty of keeping the United States safe from terrorism.

"Whether or not we can be ever fully safe is up _ you know, is up in the air," Bush said in a transcript released Sunday. "I …