"I haven't seen the ad, but what I do condemn is these regulated, soft-money expenditures," he said last night on CNN's "Larry King Live."

He hailed Kerry's stint in Vietnam and said nothing about the Massachusetts Democrat's admission on "Meet the Press" in 1971 that he had committed "atrocities" there.

"He views it as honorable service, and so do I," the president said.

He said the question was who could lead the country in time of war. "I think it's me. Because I understand the stakes."

Alluding to Iraq, King said John Kennedy "took the rap" for the Bay of Pigs fiasco. "I'm taking the rap, too, of course," Bush replied.

"That's what elections are about," he said. "The American people can go in that voting booth and decide."

Bush replied "You bet" when asked if the U.S. would leave Iraq if the government in Baghdad told it to.

"The governing of their country is up to them. They are a sovereign government. We are there at their request," he said.

The president defended staying in a classroom for seven minutes on 9/11 after being told the nation was under attack.

"I was collecting my thoughts, and I was sitting with a bunch of young kids, and I made the decision there that we would let this part of the program finish," he said.

As for Kerry's potshots about the matter, Bush noted, "I think it's easy to second-guess."

He didn't mention that Kerry has admitted being unable to think or do anything for 40 minutes after learning about the terrorist attacks.

Editor's note: