‘Murderous’ Saddam plotting attack against us, Bush tells America

US president George Bush has called Saddam Hussein a “murderous tyrant” who might be plotting to attack America with biological and chemical weapons.

Saddam and his “nuclear holy warriors” were also building a nuclear weapons programme, Mr Bush said in an address to the American people on Monday night.

“If we allow that to happen, a terrible line would be crossed,” the president told civic group leaders at the Cincinnati Museum Centre. “Saddam Hussein would be in a position to blackmail anyone who opposes his aggression.

“He would be in a position to dominate the Middle East. He would be in a position to threaten America. And Saddam Hussein would be in a position to pass nuclear technology to terrorists,” Mr Bush said.

His address opened a week of debate in Congress over resolutions giving the president authority to wage war against Iraq. The House and Senate planned votes for tomorrow, and the Bush-backed resolution was expected to pass by wide margins.

Still, doubts lingered at home and abroad about Bush’s plans.

Even as he spoke, new polls revealed continued unease among voters about going to war, particularly if casualties were high or fighting distracted attention from America’s sagging economy. Democrats criticised Mr Bush’s insistence upon confronting Iraq alone if the United Nations failed to act.

Mr Bush hopes an overwhelming vote in Congress will persuade reluctant allies in the United Nations to adopt a tough new resolution forcing Saddam to disarm, by force if necessary.

Mr Bush said US intelligence showed Iraq to be building manned and unmanned aerial vehicles, or UAVs, that could be used to target the United States with chemical or biological weapons.

He said Iraq had trained members of Osama bin Laden’s al-Qaida terrorist group, and that a “very senior al-Qaida leader” had received medical treatment in Baghdad.

“Iraq could decide on any given day to provide a biological or chemical weapon to a terrorist group or individual terrorists,” Mr Bush said. “Alliances with terrorists could allow the Iraqi regime to attack America without leaving any fingerprints.”

On the anniversary of the first US airstrikes in Afghanistan, Mr Bush tried to explain why Iraq should be the next front in the war on terror.

He hoped to dispel doubts of domestic critics and to persuade other nations to support a UN resolution ordering Iraq to submit to tough new weapons inspections.

Advisers said the biggest questions Mr Bush hoped to answer were: Why now? Why Iraq?

“While there are many dangers in the world, the threat from Iraq stands alone because it gathers the most serious dangers of our age in one place,” Mr Bush said. “Iraq’s weapons of mass destruction are controlled by a murderous tyrant, who has already used chemical weapons to kill thousands of people. By its past and present actions, by its technological capabilities, by the merciless nature of its regime, Iraq is unique.”

The address was loaded with political implications, coming four weeks before the November 5 congressional elections that will determine control of the House and Senate.

While Mr Bush’s job approval rating remains high, a new CBS-New York Times poll showed that a solid majority of Americans believed he should give UN weapons inspectors time to act.

More than one-third of Americans fear the economy will get worse if the United States attacks Iraq, and half think military action against Iraq would increase the risk of terrorist attacks. Democrats suggested Mr Bush should pay at least as much attention to the economy.

“The threats posed by Iraq are significant, yet our nation’s economic security is just as critical,” said Democratic Party chairman Terry McAuliffe.