Desperate Measures

In last night's speech, President Bush argued that terrorist attacks prompted by the U.S. invasion of Iraq would demonstrate the wisdom of military action:

If Saddam Hussein attempts to cling to power, he will remain a deadly foe until the end. In desperation, he and terrorist groups might try to conduct terrorist operations against the American people and our friends. These attacks are not inevitable. They are, however, possible.

And this very fact underscores the reason we cannot live under the threat of blackmail. The terrorist threat to America and the world will be diminished the moment that Saddam Hussein is disarmed.

Opponents of the war, of course, argue that invading Iraq threatens to trigger the very danger it is supposed to avert. Let's hope there is no need to trot out these dueling interpretations again.