Campaign finance reform has had an interesting effect:

Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) today announced that he would reject public financing of his presidential campaign during the primaries, freeing him from a $45 million spending limit. Kerry joins fellow Democrat Howard Dean and President Bush in rejecting the taxpayer subsidies, which can provide as much as $18.6 million.

Bush has already raised in excess of $100 million for his campaign, with a goal of $170 million to $200 million. Dean leads the Democratic field with $25 million, and the flow of cash to his campaign has been accelerating every quarter. Dean has declared a goal of matching Bush at $200 million.

Kerry, who described himself as a fighter "for campaign finance reform to limit the influence of big corporations and moneyed interests in our government," blamed Dean for his decision to abandon a program viewed by its supporters as a key post-Watergate reform designed to limit spending and encourage small donors.

"I wish Howard Dean had kept his promise to stay within the campaign finance system. But he did not. He changed the rules of this race – and anyone with a real shot at the nomination must now play by those rules. And today, let me be clear: I'm in this campaign to win the nomination and to defeat George Bush next November," Kerry said at a press conference in Des Moines that his campaign made minimal efforts to publicize.

Kerry never accepts any responsibility for anything. That's why he's trailing. He despicable. I was for campaign finance reform by the way.