WESTLAKE, Ohio - (KRT) - Rudy Giuliani stepped all over President Bush's message of the day when he suggested Thursday that U.S. troops and not the White House were responsible for the missing explosives in Iraq.

"The actual responsibility for it really would be for the troops that were there," Giuliani said on NBC's "Today" show. "Did they search carefully enough? Didn't they search carefully enough?"

John Kerry's campaign quickly noted that commanders say the soldiers who stopped at the arms depot during the push to Baghdad were not ordered to search or secure the place.

"If George Bush is going to have his friends out there blaming the troops, then he needs to back up his claims with evidence. Mr. President, show America the order that you issued for our troops to secure these dangerous explosives," said Kerry running mate John Edwards. "Our men and women in uniform did their jobs. It's our commander in chief, George Bush, who didn't do his."

A top Bush adviser brushed off Giuliani's remark, saying merely that "it sounded like an ineloquent comment."

Giuliani's comment was especially awkward because the Bush campaign had decided to counter Kerry's fourth day of hammering on the issue by accusing Kerry of attacking the troops.

"Senator Kerry is again attacking the actions of our military in Iraq, with complete disregard for the facts," Bush said at a rally in Saginaw, Mich. "Sen. Kerry will say anything to get elected."

Pressed to explain how Kerry blamed the troops, Bush aides pointed to a comment Kerry made last week when he said, "This administration failed to guard those stockpiles."

Both sides claim the Iraq explosives scandal helps them by "crystalizing" their main attack: Kerry strategist Mike McCurry said it shows how Bush mishandled the war and Bush guru Karl Rove said it was a chance to slam Kerry for opportunism.

Kerry ratcheted up his criticism of Bush, saying the fact that no attempt was made to secure such a large stockpile of explosives while Iraq's oil fields got priority illustrates Bush's "continuing misjudgments" in Iraq.

"Mr. President, it is long since time for you to start taking responsibility for the mistakes you have made," Kerry said at a rally in Toledo, Ohio.

"Every American can understand this, it seems, except for you," Kerry said, adopting the exaggerated tone an adult might use with a child. "They're not where they are supposed to be. You were warned to guard them. You didn't guard them."

Giuliani issued a statement saying the Kerry camp was twisting his words. "We don't need someone who voted against funding our troops during war to take my remarks out of context," Giuliani said. "Like the president, I wholeheartedly support our troops."

(Kennedy reported from Columbus, Ohio.)

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