Was the war in Iraq waged to assure that Sadam Hussien and his Bathist regime did not successfully develop weapons of mass destruction which might be transferred to Al Queda or other anti-American terrorist groups, or to benefit the Iraqi people by freeing them from a brutal regime which has tortured, raped, and murdered tens of thousands Iraqi’s? While the invasion of Iraq was clearly justified on both merits these considerations were secondary to the underlying motives which remain unspoken. The invasion of Iraq should be seen for what it really was, the first step in a larger strategy to defeat the growing movement of radical Islamic terrorism, a fight for the hearts and minds of the Islamic nations.

We should make no mistake, the principal reason for the invasion of Iraq was a well thought out strategic prepositioning of the U.S. war on global terrorism. The radical clerics in Iran, Syria, and Saudi Arabia, and their Governments were the real targets of our actions. Their schools teach five year olds to hate, and ten year olds to kill in the name of their extremist religious beliefs. Their graduates are the recruits in the Al Queda training camps, the battlefields of Afghanistan, the skies of New York, and the streets of Baghdad. They are the ever growing future threat to the U.S. and the free world.

For somewhat different reasons both the Iranian and Saudi Arabian governments sponsor these schools and fund the world wide terrorist movement. The growth of radical Islamic terrorism will not diminish until Iran, Syria, and Saudi move forcefully to disenfranchise the Wahabi teachings, close their schools, and terminate all funding for terrorist operations.

Could we have just taken direct action against Iran and Saudi rather than Iraq? Probably not if you honestly assess the total lack of support which would have been likely from the American public or our allies. Probably not when Iran and Saudi control the Persian Gulf oil resources on which our energy based economy functions.

Some would have chosen to do nothing but the Bush administration chose a bold strategy which envisioned a courageous and long term master plan. Invade Iraq, the threat is real, the merits are justified, their allies and ours will squirm but not intervene. Establish a free democratic nation in the heart if Islam which would place the governments of Iran, Syria, and Saudi under extreme internal pressures for reform thus positioning the U.S. to significantly influence the behavior of Saudi, Iran, and their satellite nations. If successful we could then demand closing of the schools, the terrorist camps, and the funding stream which facilitates the terrorist activities around the world. Given the unrest in their own populations and our military presence on their borders most would predict the required cooperation and the chain which sustains Islamic terrorism would be broken. Only then would our world be a significantly safer place.

While the Persian Gulf nations and the radical islamic terrorist movement fully understood the Bush strategy the American public did not. President Bush has remained unwilling or unable to clearly articulate the real reasons we are in Iraq and the critical significance of winning the fight. The anti-war left including most of the Democratic leadership and the national news media has successfully weakened both the Presidents resolve and capacity to achieve victory through their constant criticism of the war and their failure to grasp the price of retreat. The Iraqi leadership has failed to stand up to the militant Sunni’s, Shiite’s, and growing armed militia’s and death squads subservient to powerful Mullah’s who resist a successful democracy. As a result he radical Islamic terrorist and the nations which sponsor them smell victory and redouble their aggressive behavior while our allies among the more moderate Arab nations are hesitant to support us as they fear we will once again shirk from finishing the job and leave them at the mercy of their more militant neighbors.

The decisions we make over the next few weeks will profoundly influence the world. If we choose to stay the course it will require continuing sacrifice, a tougher stance toward the Iraqi government, the elimination of the armed Iraqi militias, and a hard line with Iran including elimination of their nuclear weapons development. It will also require a united front of the American people and their elected officials. While this may appear as a very tall order the rewards for success are great. Conversely the cost of failure, including one which might be disguised as a negotiated settlement with Iran and Syria, is both frightening and predictable. A nuclear armed, militant, and hostile, Iran will rapidly gain control of the entire Persian Gulf including Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Iraq, and Kuwait. Their sponsorship of militant Islamic terrorist will explode across the western world plunging humanity into the depths of conflagration. Israel would be quickly annihilated and ultimately the U.S. will be targeted as a nuclear battle ground for the survival of the free world.