Bush Speeds Up Preparations For War On Iraq

President Bush has summoned congressional leaders for top-level talks in the White House today amid clear signals that the United States is accelerating its preparations for war with Iraq.

Mr Bush's meeting with senior Republicans and Democrats is an indication that the president will try to regain control of the fractious debate over Saddam Hussein.

It was announced last night after Mr Bush returned from holiday apparently with a renewed determination to topple Saddam.

White House officials say it is almost certain that Mr Bush will seek the authorisation of Congress to use force against the Iraqi dictator, even though he is probably not legally bound to do so.

Leading figures in both houses support overthrowing Saddam, and Mr Bush's position is bolstered by stronger public and congressional support than his father enjoyed before the Gulf War in 1991.

Although public utterances indicating policy differences between the hawkish and more cautious wings of his administration have been portrayed as evidence of confusion, Mr Bush's advisers insist they are part of a coordinated plan to "prepare the battlefield" before war.

Publicly, the White House says the decision to go to war has not been taken. Privately, senior officials say military action is inevitable.

Donald Rumsfeld, the defence secretary, said yesterday that it was safe to assume the Iraqis had "not been playing tiddlywinks" since weapons inspectors left the country in 1998, but had instead been seeking to develop a nuclear capability.

He also hinted that in due course Mr Bush would provide "documentation" proving that Saddam has access to weapons of mass destruction.

Mr Bush, whose "working holiday" at his ranch in Crawford, Texas, ended yesterday, has not spoken about Iraq for nearly a fortnight.

Instead, Vice President Dick Cheney and Mr Rumsfeld have been left to make hawkish pronouncements, while Colin Powell, the secretary of state, has struck a much more conciliatory note.

This has been deliberate, officials argue. Allowing senior officials to sketch the parameters of policy allows the president maximum flexibility. The different messages have also been aimed at different constituencies.

Mr Cheney's statement in Nashville that the threat posed by Saddam presented "an imperative for preemptive action" was primarily directed at those loyal to the Iraqi leader.

By convincing Iraqi soldiers that Saddam's removal is inevitable, they are much less likely to fight to the death for him. Hollowing out Saddam's support could cause his regime to implode once the first US-led action begins, officials said.

When Mr Rumsfeld said in San Diego that "it is less important to have unanimity than it is to be making the right decision and doing the right thing, even though at the outset it may seem lonesome", he was telling America's allies that their views were largely irrelevant.

Many officials argue that it is only by telling allies an Iraqi invasion will happen anyway that they will be persuaded to come on board and reap the benefits in financial contracts and future influence.

Mr Powell's view, expressed to the BBC, that "as a first step, let's see what the [weapons] inspectors find" was designed to reassure the same allies that the Bush administration was being responsible and exploring all diplomatic avenues.

The White House is determined to avoid a protracted debate on arms inspectors. Mr Cheney's contention that their readmission would "provide false confidence that Saddam was somehow back in his box" underlined this.

But Mr Bush's Iraq strategy has been complicated by international criticism and the public doubts of Brent Scowcroft and James Baker, national security adviser and secretary of state respectively under President George Bush Snr during the Gulf War.

One summer day the Little Red Hen found a grain of wheat.
"A grain of wheat!" said the Little Red Hen to herself. "I will plant it."
She asked the duck: "Will you help me plant this grain of wheat?"
"Not I," said the duck.
She asked the goose: "Will you help me plant this grain of wheat?"
"Not I," said the goose.
She asked the cat: "Will you help me plant this grain of wheat?"
"Not I," said the cat.
She asked the pig: "Will you help me plant this grain of wheat?"
"Not I," said the pig.
"Then I will plant it myself," said the Little Red Hen.
And she did.

Soon the wheat grew tall, and the Little Red Hen knew it was time to reap it.
"Who will help me reap the wheat?" she asked.
"Not I," said the duck.
"Not I," said the goose.
"Not I," said the cat.
"Not I," said the pig.
"Then I will reap it myself," said the Little Red Hen.
And she did.

So she reaped the wheat, and it was ready to take to the mill to be made into flour.
"Who will help me carry the wheat to the mill?" she asked.
"Not I," said the duck.
"Not I," said the goose.
"Not I," said the cat.
"Not I," said the pig.
"Then I will carry it myself," said the Little Red Hen.
And she did.

So she carried the wheat to the mill and the miller made it into flour, and she carried the flour home.
When she got there, she asked, "Who will help me make the flour into dough?"
"Not I," said the duck.
"Not I," said the goose.
"Not I," said the cat.
"Not I," said the pig.
"Then I will make the dough myself," said the Little Red Hen.
And she did.

So she put on a white apron, and mixed the dough. Soon the bread was ready to go into the oven.
"Who will help me bake the bread?" said the Little Red Hen.
"Not I," said the duck.
"Not I," said the goose.
"Not I," said the cat.
"Not I," said the pig.
"Then I will bake it myself," said the Little Red Hen.
And she did.

After the loaf had been taken from the oven it was set on the table to cool.
"And now," said the Little Red Hen, "who will help me to eat the bread?"
"I will!" said the duck.
"I will!" said the goose.
"I will!" said the cat.
"I will!" said the pig.
"No, I will eat it myself!" said the Little Red Hen.

And she did.

ALLIES? ALLIES? IT'S A JOKE, RIGHT?

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