Kerry kicks off his campus tour with speech, rock show at UNH

DURHAM, N.H. -- John F. Kerry reached out to college-age voters yesterday in his quest for the presidency, releasing a so-called misery index indicating that college tuitions and other family expenses have risen precipitously despite the tax cuts enacted during the Bush administration.

Beginning a weeklong campus tour that will take him to universities in Rhode Island, New York, and Pennsylvania this week, the Massachusetts senator told a crowd of about 1,000 gathered in the University of New Hampshire's Whittemore Center Arena: "There is no greater responsibility now, in what I believe is the most important election of our generation, than to become involved in the effort to persuade other people, to reach out and to talk to people -- not propaganda, political drivel: common sense, truth."

To boost the size of the crowd, Kerry offered a free performance by "Guster," one of the most popular bands among students. The arena, which holds up to 7,500 for concerts, was partitioned in half for the event. The students were coralled on the floor and into one seating area to thicken the backdrop. Kerry's admakers were on hand to film the scene for campaign commercials.

Several students attending the event said they were interested in Kerry -- but perhaps even more so in Guster. During his sweep through the Northeast this week, Kerry will also be appearing with Blink 182 singer Tom DeLonge and rocker Jon Bon Jovi, as well as prominent politicians such as Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton, who will attend a Kerry event tomorrow in New York.

"I'm pretty much decided on Kerry, but I want to hear more from him -- and definitely Guster's a benefit, too," said Nick Cassidy, 18, a freshman business major from Strafford.

Meredith Moutran, 22, a political science major from Avon, Conn., also said Guster was a draw. "They're a pretty political band," she said. "They're very open to political causes." Of Kerry, she said, "I've always heard that he's a pretty good public speaker."

Before his speech, Kerry visited a foreign policy class, where he renewed his push for a greater role by the United Nations in Iraq.

"Lakhdar Brahimi [the UN special representative] is over there now," the senator said. "He's one of the most skilled and capable people with respect to Iraq and the Middle East. He can talk to all the parties. He would be a perfect example of somebody to whom you could ask to really take over what Paul Bremer's doing, de-Americanize the effort, and begin to put it under the United Nations umbrella." L. Paul Bremer III is the top administrator in Iraq.

Later, during a brief exchange with a reporter as he visited a campus bookstore, Kerry said he had read the Aug. 6, 2001, Presidential Daily Brief that indicated Al Qaeda was active in the United States, but he had no comment other than to say "it deserves to be digested."

The campus tour kicked off on the same day the Kerry campaign released a report about the rising "misery index" under the Bush administration.

The study said tuition costs at public colleges and universities have risen 13 percent during the past three years, reflecting the pressure on cash-strapped states to balance their budgets amid a slow national economy. The report said costs at private colleges have risen 5 percent during the same span.

At the same time, said the report, which was released in more than a dozen states that are competitive electorally, wages have fallen 0.2 percent when adjusted for inflation, while health insurance premiums have risen 11 percent and gasoline prices have increased by 15 percent.

As did onetime presidential candidate Howard Dean, Kerry argues that those cost increases have far offset the benefits for the middle class from the three major tax cuts enacted since Bush took office in 2001.

Steve Schmidt, a spokesman for the Bush-Cheney campaign, dismissed the report as a political stunt similar to an analysis released by the Kerry campaign last week that projected a $6 trillion increase in the federal deficit if all of the president's spending proposals are approved.

"John Kerry has made a calculation that if he talks down the economy, it will benefit him politically," Schmidt said.

Tonight Kerry is to attend a fund-raiser at the Sheraton Boston Hotel, an event organizers say could raise as much as $5 million. Actor Ben Affleck is expected to make an appearance.

Meanwhile, as Americans rush to meet Thursday's federal tax-filing deadline, accountants were putting the finishing touches on Kerry's return. The campaign plans to release both it and the senator's returns for the prior five years sometime this week. In total, Kerry has released returns for the past 20 years, since he moved from the State House as lieutenant governor to the Capitol as a US senator.

Glen Johnson can be reached at johnson@globe.com.