NEW YORK -- Two of the nation's more popular Republicans, First Lady Laura Bush and California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, awaited their turns on the podium tonight in a Republican convention that opened yesterday with praise for President Bush as a commander in the war on terror.

J. Stephan Savoia, Associated Press Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., walks on stage to deliver his remarks during the Republican National Convention yesterday. Charlie Neibergall, Associated Press Filmmaker Michael Moore offers his assessment of Sen. John McCain's address to delegates. Click either photo to view larger version. Related coverage Strategist Rove outlines Bush's plans to win Pennsylvania Gays' ads ask inclusive platform This time, it's GOP's turn to roll out war veterans Family time: Candidates' wives, daughters take message to the campaign trail Reporter's Notebook: 8/31/04 See a Campaign 2004 Photo Journal Text of yesterday's speeches Commentary Dennis Roddy: Of Bush twins, 'Radioman,' other celebs Cartoonist Rob Rogers' Republican Convention Sketchboook

Blocks from the site where two planes altered this city's skyline and world history, the Republican National Convention got underway with invocations of the nation's response to the Sept. 11 attacks as an argument for the re-election of President Bush.

In one of first actions of tonight's session, the Pennsylvania delegation is scheduled to provide the deciding votes to officially nominate Bush for a second term. In the carefully orchestrated roll call, Pennsylvania will give the president the 1,255 majority needed to carry the Republican nomination into the general election.

With modern conventions affording no suspense as to the identity of the nominee, the vote count is manipulated to give the honor to a given state, usually the nominee's home state or a crucial battleground in the November contest. Pennsylvania fits the latter description.

For the same reason, at the Democratic convention in Boston Ohio's votes sealed the nomination for Sen. John F. Kerry.

Last night, the Republicans featured party luminaries who lauded Bush's courage and resolving in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks.

"It was here in 2001 in lower Manhattan that president George W. Bush stood amid the fallen towers of the World Trade Center and said to the barbaric terrorists who attacked us, "They will hear from us,' " said former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani.

"Well, they have heard from us. They heard from us in Afghanistan and we removed the Taliban. They heard from us in Iraq and we ended Saddam Hussein's reign of terror."

Bush's sometime rival, Arizona Sen. John McCain, echoed the endorsement.

"He has been tested and has risen to the most important challenge of our time, and I salute him," McCain said of Bush.

Echoing the president's own words in a Sept 20, 2001 address to a Joint Session of Congress in the wake of the 9/11 attacks, McCain continued: "He has not wavered. He has not flinched from the hard choices. He will not yield. And neither will we."

The rounds of praise were mixed with sharp criticisms of Bush's opponent, Sen. John F. Kerry, as Republican delegates gathered in Madison Square Garden amid tight security and political suspense. Polls continue to depict an extraordinarily close race featuring a historically small sliver of undecided voters.

"Does anybody really know where John Kerry stands on the war?" House Speaker Dennis Hastert demanded in one of a litany of withering depictions of the Democratic nominee as an uncertain, inconsistent pretender to national leadership.

"John Kerry's record of inconsistent positions on combating terrorism gives us no confidence that he can pursue ... a difficult, determined course," Giuliani said in an extended recitation characterizing Kerry's carreer as a "line of contradictions."

Last night and throughout this week, Republican convention managers are negotiating a delicate line, paying repeated tribute to the victims of the 9/11 attacks and the nation's rallying response while trying to avoid the appearance of exploiting the tragedy politically. In another tactical balancing act, the Bush re-election team is pursuing the traditional convention goal of exciting the party faithful while reaching out to undecided voters in the middle of the political spectrum.

The week's roster of speakers reflects the reaching out, as it features, in addition to conservatives such as Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney, a variety of prime time appearances by figures closer to the political center than the platform the delegates adopted in their first order of business yesterday morning.

Schwarzenegger was a prime example, a popular governor chosen more for his star quality than his adherence to Republican orthodoxy.

Laura Bush, in a rare foray into foreign policy, will present her husband as a commanding warrior against terrorism.

On a night when the convention's overarching theme is to be compassion, the first lady chose to address "the issue that I believe is most important for my own daughters, for all our families, and for our future: George's work to protect our country and defeat terror so that all children can grow up in a more peaceful world."

In excerpts of her speech released today, Laura Bush says, "I am so proud of the way George has led our country with strength and conviction.

"Our parents' generation confronted tyranny and liberated millions. As we do the hard work of confronting today's threat, we can also be proud that 50 million more men, women and children live in freedom today thanks to the United States of America and our allies."

The first lady was to be introduced by her 22-year-old twin daughters, Jenna and Barbara, late additions to the podium lineup.

As preparations for this evening's session went on inside Madison Square Garden, anarchist demonstrators were assembling in sites throughout the city, preparing to protest.

There were no early reports of violence or major disruption outside the hall.

However, a man was arrested last night following a struggle with Secret Service agents after entering a restricted area near Vice President Dick Cheney and making anti-war statements. Cheney never was in any danger, law enforcement officials said.

The incident occurred at about 9:20 p.m. as Cheney sat with his wife, Lynne, in a box off the convention floor at Madison Square Garden.

According to law enforcement officials, the unidentified man was dressed like a convention volunteer and got close enough to Cheney's box to make some anti-war statements. There was a struggle when Secret Service agents went to grab the man, and he had to be subdued, one of the officials said. No weapons were found on him.

Last night, Giuliani placed Bush in a line of historical figures that included Winston Churchill and Ronald Reagan.

"In times of danger, as we are now in, Americans should put leadership at the core of their decision," he said. "There are many qualities that make a great leader, but having strong beliefs, being able to stick with them through popular and unpopular times, is the most important characteristic of a great leader.

	J. Scott Applewhite, Associated Press Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani addresses the delegates at the Republican National Convention last night. Click photo for larger image.

"Winston Churchill saw the dangers of Hitler when his opponents and much of the press characterized him as a war-mongering gadfly. Ronald Reagan saw and described the Soviet Union as 'the evil empire' when world opinion accepted it as inevitable and belittled Ronald Reagan's intelligence. George W. Bush sees world terrorism for the evil that it is."

Bush, who planned to make a campaign appearance in Carlisle, Pa., today, will formally accept his party's nomination Thursday evening, but the delegates and television viewers didn't have to wait until then to hear from him. Last night's proceedings were interspersed with videotaped segments of Bush making the case for different aspects of his record.

As they had with the Democratic convention earlier this month, the major broadcast networks rationed their coverage of the GOP gathering to a mere three hours of prime time. While the proceedings are to be aired extensively on outlets such as PBS, C-SPAN, CNN and Fox, the three traditional networks skipped last night's events entirely. Network executives have justified their programming decisions by pointing out the steadily declining ratings of national party conventions over the past two decades.

Kerry and the Democrats repeatedly emphasized Kerry's status as a veteran during their convention. The Republicans were intent on wresting the mantle of veterans champion away from him."The sacrifices in this war will not be shared equally by all Americans," McCain said. "The president is the first to observe, most of the sacrifices fall, as they have before, to the brave men and women of our armed forces.

"We may be good citizens, but make no mistake, they are the very best of us."

Perhaps McCain's strongest applause line, however, came when he denounced Michael Moore, director of the film Farenheit 911, as "a disingenuous filmmaker who would have us believe that Saddam Hussein's Iraq was an oasis of peace when in fact it was a place of indescribable cruelty." Moore, covering the convention as a columnist for USA Today, was in the press stand to hear the negative review.

More details in tomorrow's Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.