"I think the president made a mistake in the way he took us to war," Kerry told Stahl on Sunday evening's program.. "I am against the war -- the way the president went to war was wrong."
But Kerry also said he doesn't regret his vote giving President Bush the authority to go to war "as a last resort." Said Kerry, "I believe, based on the information we have, it was the correct vote."
Kerry repeated that "the way [President Bush] went to war was a mistake." Stahl did not ask him exactly what he would do about the war if he is elected president.
Sen. John Edwards, jumping to Kerry's defense, said the difference between Bush and Kerry is this: "If John Kerry were president of the United States, we would never be in this place. He would never have done what George Bush did. He would have done the hard work to build the alliances and the support system."
Edwards said he and Kerry would have "found out" that Saddam did not have weapons of mass destruction, and he said President Bush "didn't do the things that should have been done before taking this country to war."
Most press reports on the "60 Minutes" interview concentrated on Kerry defending his "youthful" running mate. Kerry said Sen. Edwards is "more qualified" to lead the nation than George W. Bush was four years ago.
