ASHINGTON - Al Gore brushed off accusations last night that he exaggerates, saying, ''I think in a campaign if you get a fact wrong people accuse you of exaggeration.''
Appearing on CNN's ''Larry King Live'' with his wife, Tipper, the Democratic presidential nominee also said he understood the Commission on Presidential Debates' decision to exclude Green Party candidate Ralph Nader and Reform Party candidate Pat Buchanan from the Boston debate next week between him and Texas Governor George W. Bush.
The commission did so because neither candidate had mustered 15 percent support in national public opinion polls.
''Most people want to see a clash of ideas and a presentation between the people that really have the support of most of the people,'' said Gore.
Responding to Bush's boast that he could overcome the current political odds and win California on Election Day, Gore said, ''I think that Florida is a very competitive state.'' Florida, with 25 electoral votes, is governed by Bush's brother Jeb.
Gore has gotten a reputation for political exaggeration, fueled by his assertions that he ''took the initiative'' in creating the Internet, and, just last week, that he was raised on a union lullaby that wasn't written until he was 27. The vice president later said he was joking. He told King of his reputation, ''I think that, in itself, is an exaggeration.''
The Gores' appearance followed an interview on Tuesday with Bush and his wife, Laura.
