It turns out, however, that the gun quotes weren't Kerry's at all - or so he maintains, claiming now that those words were actually written by his staff, who never checked with him.

Kerry aide Michael Meehan explained to the New York Times that his boss's interview with the sports magazine consisted of a four-page written account of his hunting experience, which, the Times noted, included "long conversational answers using first-person pronouns."

Meehan said Kerry's Chinese assault rifle was actually a single-bolt-action military rifle that he "keeps as a relic" and has never fired.

If it's a relic he took home from Vietnam, however, the top Democrat may still not be off the hook.

"If Kerry brought the gun home from the war as a souvenir he could be subject to court-martial," NRA spokesman Andrew Arulanandam told the Times.

So, why did Kerry staffers impersonate Kerry for the interview? And how did they know that he had saved a gun - relic or no - from his Vietnam days?

Meehan didn't say.

A spokesman for Outdoor Life did not respond to a Times request for comment.

Editor's note: