Senator John Kerry is once again making claims that he cannot substantiate. He charges that President Bush’s “misjudgments” led to the disappearance of 380 tons of explosives from the Iraqi al-Qaqaa facility, and that these explosives have been used against U.S. troops -- even though there is no proof for such accusations. While the Kerry campaign has already released a television ad making such allegations, they simultaneously have backed off from the same charges.

Senator Kerry’s TV ad states:

The obligation of a Commander in Chief is to keep our country safe. In Iraq, George Bush has overextended our troops and now failed to secure 380 tons of deadly explosives. The kind used for attacks in Iraq, and for terrorist bombings. His Iraq misjudgments put our soldiers at risk, and make our country less secure. And all he offers is more of the same. As President, I'll bring a fresh start to protect our troops and our nation. I'm John Kerry and I approved this message.

When pressed Tuesday about the al-Qaqaa allegations, Richard Holbrooke, one of Kerry’s top advisors, said:

You don't know the truth and I don't know the truth. I don't know the truth.

Another Kerry campaign advisor, Mike McCurry, said Wednesday:

We are not suggesting that we know for certain that the material from that facility has been used. There is good evidence that some of that material could have been used, but we're not there, we're not on the ground, we can't establish that with certainty. And I think that's why you've heard Senator Kerry be very careful about that — it 'could be,' 'can be,' 'might be' because we just don't know on that.

The terms “could be,” “can be,” and “might be” do not appear in the Kerry TV ad. According CNN.com, a spokeswoman for the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said she

…did not know whether some of the explosives may have been used in past attacks.

No one is certain what really did happen to the explosives -- yet. The National Review points out:

…the fairly obvious fact that looters could not have stuffed 380 tons of explosives into shopping bags. To transport that much material would have required about 38 large trucks — 10 tons per truck. Before the U.S. invasion, such truck convoys moved about Iraq freely. Once the U.S. was in occupation, that kind of effort could hardly have gone unnoticed.

Once again, John Kerry is saying anything he thinks will win him the general election next week -- whether it be truthful or not. And he says Bush “misled” us?