LOS ANGELES, Aug 12 (AFP) - President George W. Bush said Thursday that his Democratic rival for the White House, John Kerry, should be proud of his Vietnam war record but would not condemn an advert accusing Kerry of lying about his war activities.
Bush said he had not seen the adverts which have been paid for by a Texas businessman close to the Republican party. But the president called for a clampdown on the proliferation of campaign adverts that circumvent political financing laws that have targeted Bush and Kerry.
In the attack on Kerry, a group of veterans are seen saying that Kerry lied about his war service and exaggerated his battle wounds.
Pressed to condemn the advert, during an interview with Larry King on CNN television, Bush said Kerry should be proud of his "noble service".
"Senator Kerry is justifiably proud of his record in Vietnam and he should be."
Kerry has used his war record to press his credentials in handling the country's security, which has become a major issue in the campaign.
The president went on, "The question is: Who can best lead the country in a time of war? That's really what the debate ought to be about. And I think it's me. Because I understand the stakes."
Bush went on to set his sights on the activist groups which have raised huge amounts of money to pay for adverts as part of the campaign for the November 2 election. The adverts have diverted political finance laws which set out limits on the amounts that the two candidates can spend.
Many adverts have also targeted Bush and his policies.
"I haven't seen the ad (about Kerry), but what I do condemn is these unregulated, soft-money expenditures by very wealthy people, and they've said some bad things about me.
"I guess they're saying bad things about him. And what I think we ought to do is not have them on the air. I think there ought to be full disclosure. The campaign funding law I signed I thought was going to get rid of that."