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AlHussein and representatives of five other opposition groups spoke Saturday
in a video teleconference with Vice President Dick Cheney, who was at his
home in Jackson, Wyoming, then face-to-face with Defense Secretary Donald
Rumsfeld in Washington.
Cheney and Rumsfeld
made it clear that "how and when" hadn't been decided, bin AlHussein said.
"But we were left in no doubt of the commitment of the United States to
freeing the people of Iraq."
President Bush insisted
Saturday that he still has no timetable for an attack against Iraq.
Asked if the American
people were ready for a war with Iraq, Bush said: "That presumes there's
some kind of imminent war plan."
Following criticism
this week from some congressional Republicans, the president said his administration
was consulting with Congress and international allies about his policies
on Iraq.
"The consultation
process is a part of allowing people to fully understand our deep concerns
about this man, his regime and his desire to have weapons of mass destruction,"
Bush said during a round of golf near his Crawford, Texas, ranch.
Hard sell on the
Hill
But Bush may lack
the congressional support he would need to launch an attack. House Majority
Leader Dick Armey, R-Texas, said Thursday he believed attacking Iraq without
provocation would violate international law and undermine international
support for Bush's goal of ousting the Iraqi president.
"As long as (Hussein)
behaves himself within his own borders, we should not be addressing any
attack of resources against him," Armey said.
Bush said the American
people "understand that weapons of mass destruction are very dangerous
in the hands of leaders such as Saddam Hussein, very dangerous for ourselves,
for our allies."
"They understand
the concept of blackmail," he said.
In a CNN-Gallup poll
released Friday, 56 percent of 1,007 people polled said they had a clear
idea of why the United States was considering an attack against Iraq.
Rumsfeld and national
security adviser Condoleezza Rice are expected to meet with Bush in Crawford
next week to discuss Iraq.
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