How Donald Rumsfeld Misread Saddam Hussein's strategy and created the Iraqi insurgency

Michael Gordon, New York Times chief military correspondent and coauthor of Cobra II: The Inside Story of the Invasion and Occupation of Iraq.

Michael Gordon draws from his recently published book, Cobra II: The Inside Story of the Invasion and Occupation of Iraq, to discuss the strategic and political miscalculations by both Saddam Hussein and the United States before the launching of the war in Iraq. On the Iraq side, Gordon states that Hussein was more concerned about internal threats within the country and possible risks related to Iran than about an attack by the United States. On the American side, Gordon maintains that the White House, the Pentagon, and central command misread the enemy, failed to adapt, and ultimately prolonged the conflict by their failure to develop a sound post-invasion strategy.

The presentation concludes with a question-and-answer session.

Introduction by LBJ School Dean James B. Steinberg

(Apr 4, 2006 at the University of Texas at Austin, LBJ School of Public Affairs)

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News & Politics

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• lbj