In comments that could well apply to his own campaign and the multimillion-dollar hate groups that support him, Kerry said in New York: "They have obviously decided that some people will believe anything, no matter how fictional or how far-fetched, if they just repeat it often enough. That's how they have run their administration, that's how they're running their campaign, and that's how they will run their convention. You can't cover up reality with a few empty slogans."

Everyone can agree on one comment he made: "On almost every issue before us, we face the same fundamental choice: between the narrow interest of the few and the future of the vast majority of Americans."

Then he claimed, "The Bush campaign and its allies have turned to the tactics of fear and smear because they can't talk about jobs, health care, energy independence and rebuilding our alliances, the real issues that matter to the American people."

In adding to his tactics of fear and smear, Kerry continues to refuse to run on his abysmal record in the U.S. Senate, House and as Michael Dukakis' lieutenant governor, just as he refuses to tell his 527 allies to stop their coordinated fear-and-smear campaign against the president.

Steve Schmidt, a spokesman for the Bush-Cheney campaign, pointed out the Massachusetts Democrat's hypocrisy.

"John Kerry has been relentlessly negative," he said. "John Kerry has refused to condemn those ads."

Meanwhile, the Associated Press reported today:

"On April 23, the Kerry campaign allowed 19 reporters who were traveling with him, including one from The Associated Press, to view the 36-page medical file for about 30 minutes while simultaneously interviewing his personal physician on a conference call. The physician wrote a three-page summary of the file that was posted on the Web site.

"The Kerry campaign would not allow the AP to have a medical reporter present during that review and denied a request this week for a more substantial review. Kerry also has refused to release a journal he kept during his time in Vietnam, although parts were excerpted in Douglas Brinkley's book 'Tour of Duty.'"

Editor's note: