alternatehistory.com

Part 1

The early years of the Bush Administration was rocked by tragedy and war. The horror of September 11 sparked anger, frustration, and fear throughout the country which culminated into the war in Afghanistan. However, most Americans do not know how close the United States came to war with Iraq and Saddam Hussein. This is the untold story of how a war in the administration nearly brought war with Saddam Hussein and Iraq.

This story begins before the Bush’s Administration took office. In 1992 Paul Wolfowitz, then #3 of the Secretary of Defense, wrote an article that advocated for a policy of preemption than containment. Wolfowitz also advocated that Saddam Hussein, leader of Iraq, should be removed. Wolfowitz and his article were forgotten until Colin Powell was selected to become the Secretary of State. Powell had been appointed after the Florida recount and during a time of sharp division in the country. Bush, seeking to unify the country, chose Colin Powell because he was an immensely popular figure. During Powell’s acceptance speech he talked about many of his views on foreign policy as well as defense. Some hawks in the Republican Party were worried that Colin Powell would control the State and Defense Department. In order to appease the fears, President Bush appointed Paul Wolfowitz [1] to Secretary of Defense.

Than early in the morning of September 11, a hijacked plane smashed into the NorthTower of the WorldTradeCenter. The United States was caught by surprise as hijacked planes smashed into the twin towers of the WorldTradeCenter. Vice President Danforth was rushed by the Secret Service into a secret bunker underneath the White House. Secretary of State Colin Powell, who had canceled his trip to Peru when President Toledo had become sick, was evacuated from the State Department [2]. The President was hastily brought to Camp David while the Air Force scrambled into the air. The Air Force released orders that any suspicious airplane was to be shot down. By the time the attack was over two planes had hit the TwinTowers, a plane hit the Pentagon, and Flight United 93 had crashed in a field in Pennsylvania. Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz was evacuated before the plane had hit the Pentagon and was on his way to safety. Even the CIA office in Virginia was evacuated. Those who remained in the CIA led by George Tenet began to plan a counterattack. Immediately the CIA decided that the 9/11 was the work of Osama Bin Laden and Al-Qaeda. They began planning a widespread counterattack that involved attack Al-Qaeda in many different countries with the #1 target would be Afghanistan and the Taliban. Meanwhile some in the administration lead by Wolfowitz began to plan to include Iraq into the plan. The lines in the Administration were being drawn.

Four days after the 9/11 attack Bush gathered his war cabinet in order to discuss its next step. Wolfowitz proposes that steps against Iraq should be brought to the table. Powell, shocked, immediately rejected an attack against Iraq arguing that it was still too early to decide whether or not Saddam was involved in the attack. George Tenet and the CIA supported Colin Powell in arguing that any action against Iraq should be tabled. The CIA told the President that there was no proof that Saddam had supported Al-Qaeda. Wolfowitz argued that the CIA had been wrong in the past and were wrong about Iraq. The President decided to go along with the CIA and any action against Iraq was put on hold for now.

[1] In OTL this was Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz was Undersecretary
[2] In OTL, Powell went to Peru and was not in the country during the 9/11 attacks
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