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There is still some debate surrounding the Bush administration’s case for going to war with Iraq. Initially, the war was built on the need to remove Saddam Hussein, described by the administration as a dictator who was “building and hiding weapons that could enable him to dominate the Middle East.” According to the president, the invasion of Iraq was also an integral part of the larger war on terrorism, despite a lack of support from allies such as France and Germany both of which refused to send troops. Intensifying the debate is the fact that no WMD have yet to be recovered and the belief that initial intelligence findings on Saddam’s weapons program were inaccurate .
But in the almost three years since the U.S. led invasion took place, the dialogue surrounding the war has changed. The administration now says it also went to war to bring democracy to Iraq, in hopes it would set an example for other autocratic states in the Middle East. Saddam Hussein was captured in December 2003 . There have been three elections held in Iraq, the first in January 2005 for a preliminary government, the second in October 2005 for a constitution, and the last in December 2005 for a new government. But despite some political achievements, the insurgency remains committed and U.S. casualties have surpassed the two thousand mark, leaving many Americans doubtful that a U.S. victory is possible .