"Tough luck, senator," Rivera said to Kerry, referring to his Election Day defeat.

According to Rivera, Kerry replied:

"It was that Osama tape — it scared them [the American people]."

Kerry told the Fox host that the terror master's October surprise came too late - just four days before the vote - for him to counter.

"Senator Kerry clearly believes not only is it the security issue that cost him the election, but very specifically the Osama tapes coming out in the 11th hour," Rivera reported Friday.

The bin Laden tape echoed attacks by Kerry and other Democrats on President Bush, including references to the disputed Florida election in 2000, Halliburton and a scene from Michael Moore's "Fahrenheit 9/11."

At the time, Democrats said the video would likely help Kerry, because it would remind Americans that Bush had failed to capture bin Laden.

Editor's note: