Technicians work on the debate floor at the University of Miami convocation centre in Coral Gables, Florida. (AFP)

Coral Gables (Florida), Sept. 30 (Reuters): President George W. Bush and Democratic rival John Kerry made final preparations for their nationally televised debate, as Kerry praised his foe as ?a very clever debater? and Bush made another tour of Florida storm damage.

The 90-minute session on the University of Miami campus will give voters their first chance to compare the candidates directly and could play a big role in tipping a White House race that most polls show is close but leaning toward Bush.

Polls indicate as many as one-quarter of American voters could be swayed by the debates, which often provide insights into not only the candidates? views but their demeanour and personalities.

The session will focus on the war in Iraq, where the US death toll now stands at 1,055, and the war on terror. A series of car bombs across Iraq today killed more than 40 people, many of them children, as instability mounted there. Both issues have dominated the campaign for months, and Kerry promised to confront Bush.

?George Bush is scaring America. He?s talking terror every day and people see terrible images of what?s happening in the world, and they?re real ? people being beheaded, the acts of terror in that school in Russia,? Kerry said in an interview with ABC?s Good Morning America.

?I know how to fight a more effective war on terror, and by the end of this campaign, America will make that decision, and that?s why I?m going to win,? Kerry said, adding he was looking forward to the encounter.

?He?s a very clever debater. He?s won all his debates,? Kerry said of Bush. ?The President has been, as they say down in Texas, all hat and no cattle and I?m going to show it.?

Bush, on a morning trip to Stuart, Florida, for a survey of recent hurricane damage, gave a thumbs up and a smile when asked about the debate by a reporter, but did not reply.

?People in Florida and many other states are coming through a trying time,? Bush said as he stopped by a Red Cross relief center. He promised the federal government would work with state and local authorities to provide disaster relief.

Bush is expected to hammer Kerry for shifting his views on the war, while Kerry has condemned Bush for making America less safe with his rush to invade Iraq without international support and his failure to plan adequately for the war's aftermath.

Bush campaign communications director Nicolle Devenish said Kerry?s toughest challenge would be making a direct connection with voters.

Dan Bartlett, White House communications director, said Bush?s debate preparations were ?long and steady instead of a crash course.? Bush, he said, ?knows his positions. You don?t have to memorise something you believe in.?

With many polls showing voters still trust Bush more to handle key issues, including Iraq, the debate could be Kerry?s last chance to turn around his image.