In the space of one year, we have seen both change and progress in our effort to bring self-sustaining freedom to the people of Iraq.

On January 1, 2003, Saddam Hussein was clinging to power.  His control over the future of his regime was waning and his confidence that the terror and genocide he visited on his own people, as well as those in neighboring nations, was fast becoming no more than an illusion.

One year ago, much of the world stood by as America & Great Britain insisted Iraq posed a growing threat to the stability of the Middle East and to the world.  We may never know why some of our allies stood on the sidelines, whether it was because of high-value contracts, to protect political gains in their own countries, or simply as a matter of conscience.  Saddam was buying more than goods and services for his rule from them – he was buying time.

The people of Iraq were frightened of the future as 2003 began.  They lacked a participatory political system.  They did not know the freedom of expression.  They lived in fear of a brutal dictator and the imprisonment, torture, and murder of his regime.  Saddam Hussein poured his nation’s wealth, his people’s resources, and international aid into his preparations for war.

Much has changed in a year.

On January 1, 2004, war had come to Iraq.  Saddam’s rule is over.  He will imminently be tried for his crimes, in part by those he oppressed during years of dictatorial rule.  Our mission in Iraq is now one of peace and rebuilding.  Our soldiers are not just warriors, not just loved sons and daughters: they are also doctors, engineers, organizers, and leaders.  They are building Iraqi communities in the model of their own, with returning home soon foremost in their mind.

Iraq is no longer a threat to its neighbors – it is an example.  America is not the Great Satan to the people there – it is the great Liberator.  Other nations who shrank from the fight against Saddam are now clamoring for contracts.  Through diplomacy, America is encouraging the forgiveness of debts by nations who did not participate in the Coalition we led.  But many other nations have contributed troops, equipment, aid, and financial resources to our cause.  Iraq is becoming an example to every nation in the Middle East that a free society is painful to build, but it is possible to build and it is worthwhile. 

At home, all Americans but the most extreme objectors to our mission must agree that our humanitarian mission in Iraq has been successful.  But as much as has changed in one year for us at home in our perspectives on Iraq – the Iraqis’ perspective has changed far more.  I must admit I wonder if we may never find ready-to-use weapons of mass destruction, but we have found components, schemes, and the chemicals of mass murder littered among Saddam’s legacy of genocide and terror.  Iraqis who once ran from a cruel regime can now slowly turn to self-government.

On my recent trip to the Middle East, I saw firsthand the value of our devoted troops to the struggling men and women in Iraq.  Where there were political prisons, there are now hospitals and schools.  Where there were ethnic and social divisions, there is now growing consensus.  Where there was political suppression, there are now free newspapers. 

Statues of Saddam Hussein have now been replaced with the flag of a free Iraqi people.

The new year holds a promise of even more progress in Iraq.  The transition to self government will move forward with the creation of a constitution designed to protect the very rights Saddam Hussein stripped from his people.  Instead of committing crimes against Iraqis, Saddam Hussein will receive their justice.