Christopher Ruddy
Monday, April 28, 2002

As editor of NewsMax, I feel some vindication of what President Bush has done in bringing down the Iraq regime and ousting Saddam.

Soon after 9/11, NewsMax was among the first out of the box to make the case for Saddam’s links to Osama bin Laden.

At the time – and remember, it was not in vogue to do so – NewsMax was heavily promoting the work of Laurie Mylroie, perhaps the best expert on this matter.

Myrloie offered persuasive evidence linking Saddam Hussein to the 1993 bombing attempt on the World Trade Center – which took place on the anniversary of the beginning of the U.S. offensive in the Gulf War.

NewsMax Magazine’s first edition right after 9/11 featured Saddam Hussein on the cover, with the headline “The Evil One.” I remember receiving criticism that we were “stretching” things to make a case against Saddam in the aftermath of 9/11.

But our loyal NewsMax readers will know that since we founded our Web and print publications, our concerns about Saddam have been paramount. In fact, I wrote that it seemed almost as if the Clinton administration actually wanted Saddam to stay in power.

This may have been difficult to believe, but after great threats by Clinton against the Iraqi regime and his demand that Saddam disarm his weapons of mass destruction program (Clinton’s comments then were as harsh as President Bush would later make), Clinton let Saddam off the hook time and again.

It’s no wonder Saddam felt impervious to international sanctions and pressure.

After 9/11, NewsMax reported on the details of a great book, “See No Evil,” by Robert Baer, the highest-ranking CIA operative in Northern Iraq during the Clinton years.

Baer said he was shocked when the Clinton administration turned down more than one opportunity to assassinate Saddam. In fact, Baer himself would be recalled and brought up on spurious charges – later dropped – that he had violated federal law in attempting to assassinate a foreign leader.

It is clear, now that Saddam’s whereabouts remain unanswered, that an assassination of Saddam may have been a better option than an outright invasion.

The U.S. invasion has worked to dislodge Saddam’s regime. But now, the aftermath is unclear. I saw on NBC News this week a report that tens of thousands of Shia Muslims surrounded the U.S. compound in Karbala shouting “No to America.”

If we are not careful and tough, America could get caught up in quagmire, with many Iraqis unwilling to support a new, more democratic regime precisely because they fear Saddam and his network will rise up against them.

There will be many forces working behind the scenes to see that a stable, pro-democratic regime is not established in Iraq. This is why it is critical for President Bush and the administration to remain firmly in control of Iraq until order is established. As Weekly Standard editor Bill Kristol said on Fox News Sunday, “We need to err on the side of being strong.”

Read more on this subject in related Hot Topics:
Al-Qaeda
Saddam Hussein/Iraq

Editor's note:
"CATASTROPHE" Reveals Bill Clinton’s Role in 9/11 - Click Here to find out more