ANCHESTER, N.H. - It's Veterans Day in the first-in-the-nation primary state, and a skirmish has broken out.
John McCain, an Arizona senator and former prisoner of war, has centered his campaign here on winning veterans' votes. Today, he will release a list of more than 500 veterans who are backing his candidacy, and he will tour the state. He will visit a veteran's home in Tilton, march in Nashua's Veterans Day parade, and salute veterans at the Hudson Veterans of Foreign Wars, with the actress Connie Stevens.
Now comes George W. Bush, the front-running Texas governor and a former pilot in the Texas Air National Guard, who is making a bid for some of that support for himself. This week, he released a list of 15 veterans who are endorsing him, and yesterday, in Vermont, he trotted out a retired Army lieutenant colonel, Dwight Lorenz, who has switched his allegiance from McCain to Bush.
This tussle between McCain and Bush, however, is about far more than endorsements and parades. In a state that boasts more veterans per capita than does any other state - there are 139,000 people here with some sort of military background - the support of veterans could tip the balance for either candidate on primary day.
Recent polls have found that McCain is rising in popularity among likely GOP primary voters, while Bush has been slipping somewhat.
''I think, clearly, Senator McCain has the edge among veterans,'' said Steve Duprey, the Republican party chairman in New Hampshire. ''He's a war hero, and veterans obviously can relate to that. On the other hand, Governor Bush is smart to realize they are an important constituency, and to aggressively court them.''
Yesterday, Bush said that despite the intensifying competition, he views McCain as a friend and not a political foe.
''I can understand why veterans would be for Senator John McCain, why they would choose a man of his caliber,'' Bush said. ''He served with distinction in the military. He's a noble man and he's a good guy and I like him.''
Last week, in a visit to the North Country, Bush met with John Smart of Hudson, the national commander of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, and with six members of Smart's leadership team. They rode in Bush's camper from Gorham to Littleton, and got to know each other.
''We don't cede any group to anyone, whether it's veterans or police chiefs or fire chiefs,'' said Joel Maiola, Bush's New Hampshire director.
Maiola said he does not believe that veterans will automatically vote for McCain just because of his celebrated naval career, which included 5 1/2 years in a North Vietnamese prison camp.
''Obviously, he has a strong resume in this area, but New Hampshire people make up their minds using a variety of issues,'' Maiola said.
Mike Dennehy, McCain's New England director, said he is pleased to see Bush going after veterans.
''I hope that George Bush spends as much time as possible wooing veterans, because he will know the strength of John McCain's support by spending his resources there,'' Dennehy said. ''He does not have the appeal.''
Dennehy was dismissive of Bush's veterans list, describing those listed as political activists, rather than as veterans' group leaders. Included on the Bush list is a congressional staff member for Senator Judd Gregg, who is Bush's state chairman, two state representatives, a former Gregg employee from his days as governor, and a former aide to Steve Merrill, also a former New Hampshire governor supporting Bush.
''I would rather have the rank-and-file support and the leadership among veterans that John McCain has than the outspoken partisan political activists that George Bush and Judd Gregg have compiled as their veteran leadership,'' Dennehy said.
In recent days, Bush has been honing his credentials on veterans' issues, and has been trying to overcome doubts about his ability to manage the nation's foreign affairs. In last week's trip to New Hampshire, every speech Bush gave was preceded by an introduction, prepared by his campaign, that reminded voters he had served in the Texas Air National Guard as a fighter pilot.
Bush has also been trying to dispel doubts about his prowess on the international front, since he flunked a television reporter's pop quiz on the names of foreign leaders. He said yesterday that each candidate for president has had different experiences with regard to foreign policy, and that no one has endured the ultimate test of serving as president.
''There is a foreign policy component to being governor of Texas, and that's dealing with Mexico, and Central America, and South America,'' he said. ''The question that the people of New Hampshire ask is, `Do I know how to keep the peace, do I know what it takes to maintain the peace ... I'm going to convince America that I've got the judgment necessary and the vision necessary to keep the peace.''
In South Carolina on Tuesday, Bush accused the Clinton administration of failing to deliver adequate health care to former soldiers. He promised to produce a top-to-bottom overhaul of the veterans' health care system, to make it easier to file claims, and to place veterans' advocates in his administration.
Last night, Bush had similar words prepared for the Association of the United States Army Granite State Chapter's annual dinner in Manchester.
McCain has worked on veterans' issues, as well as foreign affairs, in the Congress for years. And in a televised town hall meeting in Hanover, he complained vigorously that it is wrong for the nation's military families to be forced to use food stamps because their pay is inadequate.
