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Bush call Hussein a 'murderous tyrant'

President George W. Bush, seeking support for war against Iraq, called Iraqi President Saddam Hussein a "murderous tyrant" on Oct. 7 and said he may be plotting to attack the United States with biological and chemical weapons.

Bush also said Hussein could be within a year of developing a nuclear weapon, and he declared, "Facing clear evidence of peril, we cannot wait for the final proof - the smoking gun - that could come in the form of a mushroom cloud."

"I am not willing to stake one American life on trusting Saddam Hussein," the president said in a televised speech from the Cincinnati Museum Center.

Facing skepticism at home and abroad, Bush portrayed an apocalyptic struggle between good and evil, saying the threat posed by Hussein could dwarf the damage done in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in the United States. He said Iraq must be the next front in the war on terrorism.

"There is no refuge from our responsibilities," Bush said. If it comes to war, "We will prevail."

Citing information gathered by U.S. intelligence, Bush said Hussein and his "nuclear holy warriors" are building a program that could produce a nuclear weapon in less than a year. U.S. intelligence agencies issued a report recently estimating it would take until 2010.

"If we allow that to happen, a terrible line would be crossed," the president said.

As he spoke, new polls revealed lingering unease among voters about going to war, particularly if casualties are high or if fighting distracts attention from America's sagging economy. Democrats criticized Bush's insistence upon confronting Iraq alone if the United Nations fails to act.

The president hopes an overwhelming vote in Congress will persuade reluctant allies in the U.N. to adopt a tough new resolution obliging Hussein to disarm - by force, if necessary.

Shukan ST: Oct. 18, 2002

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