George W. Bush: President George W. Bush started making the case for an infiltration of Iraq in 2002."Iraq continues to flaunt its hostility toward America and to support terror," he said, adding that “states like these, and their terrorist allies, constitute an axis of evil, arming to threaten the peace of the world. By seeking weapons of mass destruction, these regimes pose a grave and growing danger.”
Bush launched the war on March 19, 2003, noting in a televised address that “helping Iraqis achieve a united, stable and free country will require our sustained commitment.”
Following his 2004 re-election, Bush presided over the worst years of the Iraqi insurgency: 2005 and 2006. In response, he approved a surge that saw an additional 20,000 troops deploy to Iraq in 2007 and 2008.
Bush’s time in office was winding down in December of 2008 when he spoke frankly about the war …show more content…
During his time in office, he violently suppressed opposition groups. Shi'a Muslims -- who make up the majority of the Iraqi population -- and ethnic Kurds often experienced the brunt of that oppression. Hussein’s Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party had its power base among Sunni Arab communities.
Although Iraq got Western backing in its 1980-88 war with Iran, the tense relationship between the Ba'ath regime and the West was irreparably broken in 1990, when Saddam invaded Kuwait and prompted a U.S.-led military response: the Gulf War of 1990-1991. It also prompted program of heavy sanctions against Iraq, many of which lasted until 2003 and devastated the Iraqi economy.
While the U.S. was accusing Saddam of hiding evidence of WMDs, the dictator sat down for a Feb. 24, 2003, interview with Dan Rather for CBS News. “There are no missiles that are contrary to the prescription of the United Nations in Iraq,” he said.
“We hope that the attack will not take place,” he added. “But we are bracing ourselves to meet such an attack, to face
Bush launched the war on March 19, 2003, noting in a televised address that “helping Iraqis achieve a united, stable and free country will require our sustained commitment.”
Following his 2004 re-election, Bush presided over the worst years of the Iraqi insurgency: 2005 and 2006. In response, he approved a surge that saw an additional 20,000 troops deploy to Iraq in 2007 and 2008.
Bush’s time in office was winding down in December of 2008 when he spoke frankly about the war …show more content…
During his time in office, he violently suppressed opposition groups. Shi'a Muslims -- who make up the majority of the Iraqi population -- and ethnic Kurds often experienced the brunt of that oppression. Hussein’s Arab Socialist Ba'ath Party had its power base among Sunni Arab communities.
Although Iraq got Western backing in its 1980-88 war with Iran, the tense relationship between the Ba'ath regime and the West was irreparably broken in 1990, when Saddam invaded Kuwait and prompted a U.S.-led military response: the Gulf War of 1990-1991. It also prompted program of heavy sanctions against Iraq, many of which lasted until 2003 and devastated the Iraqi economy.
While the U.S. was accusing Saddam of hiding evidence of WMDs, the dictator sat down for a Feb. 24, 2003, interview with Dan Rather for CBS News. “There are no missiles that are contrary to the prescription of the United Nations in Iraq,” he said.
“We hope that the attack will not take place,” he added. “But we are bracing ourselves to meet such an attack, to face