Current Political Debate

Political Debate One on the most hotly contested debates today is whether President Bush should invade Iraq. Though there are numerous experts arguing both side of this debate, most of the public's questions are left unanswered. Terrorist Attacks There are critics who believe the United States involvement in the U.N. sanctions provoked the terrorist attacks on September 11. They blame the sanctions for an increase in the death rate of Iraqi children due to starvation.

Others, however, blame Saddam Hussein for the deaths, stating he is buying weapons and living a luxurious lifestyle instead of providing food and medical supplies to the Iraqi people (Sanctions, 2001). An Argument Against War The terrorist attacks have lead President Bush to consider invading Iraq. Before he can make this decision, he must first address several issues such as how much threat does Iraq pose, the cost of war, relationships with Arab Community and what the aftermath of the war will be (4 Questions, 2002).

Iraq is considered by all experts to be a serious threat. Though there are reports that Iraq will soon have access to nuclear weapons, many experts feel it is import to exercise patience until the presence of these weapons are confirmed by international inspectors. Before going to war with Iraq, it is also important for the U.S. To realize its relationships with Arab nations may suffer (4 Questions, 2002). Cost is a major issue in this ongoing debate.

A war could not only cause higher oil prices, sending a weakened U.S. economy into a recession, but the number of causalities would also be high, since Iraq has a large, well-trained army. Also, in the aftermath of the war, U.S. troops would have to remain in Iraq until a democratic government can be established in Baghdad (4 Questions, 2002). Political Parties On September 25-2002, U.S.

Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle demanded an apology after President Bush made comments he felt "politicized a possible war with Iraq (Frazza, 2002)." Many Democrats are worried the Republicans are using the Senate hearing debates concerning Iraq as political arenas. Meanwhile, President Bush has yet to answer many of the questions posed to him by those against an immediate invasion, leaving many to wonder if he is prepared for a war.

Iraq's Response leading newspaper in Iraq recently said, "Iraq has no intention of threatening neighboring countries or world security (Yacoub, 2002)." Iraq asked the United Nations to supervise an international conference to "identify what is terror and to root out its causes (International Conference, 2002)." Iraq feels the United States is using anti-terrorism as an excuse to attack other countries, thus creating a greater animosity between the two nations. Recent Developments President Bush set a three-week deadline for Saddam Hussein on November 17th, 2002, edging the United States closer to war with Iraq.

Hussein must give U.N. weapons inspectors the locations of weapons of mass destruction (Jahn, 2002)" or prove he has removed them from Iraq. Bush has warned Iraq he will take military action if his demands are not met, causing experts to feel the "question of war and peace (Jahn, 2002)" is up to.