--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Hawks favor war on the grounds that…" description: "\"Hawks favor war on the grounds that Saddam Hussein is reckless, tyrannical and instinctively aggressive, and that if he comes into possession of nuclea..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/741/charles-krauthammer-1232_aggressive_hawks-favor-war-on-the-grounds-that-sadd_2091746.png" --- # Hawks favor war on the grounds that Saddam Hussein is… ![“Hawks favor war on the grounds that Saddam Hussein is reckless, tyrannical and instinctively aggressive, and that if he comes into possession of nuclear weapons in addition to the weapons of mass destruction he already has, he is likely to use them or share them with terrorists. The threat of mass…” quote by Charles Krauthammer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/741/charles-krauthammer-1232_aggressive_hawks-favor-war-on-the-grounds-that-sadd_2091746.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/741/charles-krauthammer-1232_aggressive_hawks-favor-war-on-the-grounds-that-sadd_2091746.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/741/charles-krauthammer-1232_aggressive_hawks-favor-war-on-the-grounds-that-sadd_2091746.png) > “Hawks favor war on the grounds that Saddam Hussein is reckless, tyrannical and instinctively aggressive, and that if he comes into possession of nuclear weapons in addition to the weapons of mass destruction he already has, he is likely to use them or share them with terrorists. The threat of mass death on a scale never before seen residing in the hands of an unstable madman is intolerable – and must be preempted.” [Charles Krauthammer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-krauthammer/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He argues that a dangerous leader possessing WMDs must be stopped before he can cause catastrophic harm. **In simple terms:** Prevent a reckless leader from getting nuclear weapons. Key Takeaway Act early to stop dangerous regimes. Themes security prevention ethics Mood cautious urgent Type political strategic When to use this quote - policy debates - international negotiations - military planning Key Concepts deterrence nuclear proliferation terrorism Questions to Reflect On - Is preemptive war always justified? - What alternatives exist to force? A Different Perspective Risk of overreach and violating sovereignty. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Aggressive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/aggressive/) [Destruction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/destruction/) [Favors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/favors/) [Grounds Saddam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/grounds-saddam-4137446/) [Hands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hands/) [Hawks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hawks/) [Hawks Favor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hawks-favor-4137445/) [Hussein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hussein/) [Hussein Reckless](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hussein-reckless-4137444/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Israel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/israel/) [Madmen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/madmen/) [Mass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mass/) [Mass destruction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mass-destruction/) [Nuclear](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nuclear/) [Nuclear weapons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nuclear-weapons/) [Possession](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/possession/) [Reckless](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reckless/) [Saddam](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/saddam/) [Saddam hussein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/saddam-hussein/) [Scales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scales/) [Share](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/share/) [Terrorist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/terrorist/) [Threat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/threat/) [Unstable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unstable/) [Use](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/use/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) [Weapons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/weapons/) [Weapons of mass destruction](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/weapons-of-mass-destruction/) ## Related quotes > [I think all of the attention of the world, to include the attention of the Arab world, should be on Saddam Hussein and whether…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-powell/i-think-all-of-the-attention-of-the-world-to-include-the-attention-of/) [Colin Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-powell/) > [Without question, we need to disarm Saddam Hussein. He is a brutal, murderous dictator, leading an oppressive regime ... He presents a particularly grievous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-f-kerry/without-question-we-need-to-disarm-saddam-hussein-he-is-a-brutal/) [John F. Kerry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-f-kerry/) > [There is no doubt that . Saddam Hussein has reinvigorated his weapons programs. Reports indicate that biological, chemical and nuclear programs continue apace and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-graham/there-is-no-doubt-that-saddam-hussein-has-reinvigorated-his-weapons/) [Bob Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-graham/) > [Our intelligence officials estimate that Saddam Hussein had the materials to produce as much as 500 tons of sarin, mustard and VX nerve agent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/our-intelligence-officials-estimate-that-saddam-hussein-had-the/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [I'm not surprised if we begin to uncover the weapons program of Saddam Hussein - because he had a weapons program.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/i-m-not-surprised-if-we-begin-to-uncover-the-weapons-program-of/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [He (Saddam Hussein) has not developed any significant capability with respect to weapons of mass destruction. He is unable to project conventional power against…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-powell/he-saddam-hussein-has-not-developed-any-significant-capability-with/) [Colin Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-powell/) > [In the four years since the inspectors left, intelligence reports show that Saddam Hussein has worked to rebuild his chemical and biological weapon stock,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/in-the-four-years-since-the-inspectors-left-intelligence-reports-show/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [If he declares he has none, then we will know that Saddam Hussein is once again misleading the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ari-fleischer/if-he-declares-he-has-none-then-we-will-know-that-saddam-hussein-is/) [Ari Fleischer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ari-fleischer/) > [Saddam Hussein's regime is despicable, he is developing weapons of mass destruction, and we cannot leave him doing so unchecked. He is a threat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-blair/saddam-hussein-s-regime-is-despicable-he-is-developing-weapons-of/) [Tony Blair](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-blair/) > [Saddam Hussein had a lengthy history of reckless and sudden aggression. He cultivated ties to terror -- hosting the Abu Nidal organization, supporting terrorists,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-cheney/saddam-hussein-had-a-lengthy-history-of-reckless-and-sudden/) [Dick Cheney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-cheney/) > [If left unchecked, Saddam Hussein will continue to increase his capacity to wage biological and chemical warfare, and will keep trying to develop nuclear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/if-left-unchecked-saddam-hussein-will-continue-to-increase-his/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) > [Simply stated, there is no doubt that Saddam Hussein now has weapons of mass destruction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-rumsfeld/simply-stated-there-is-no-doubt-that-saddam-hussein-now-has-weapons/) [Donald Rumsfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-rumsfeld/) > [There were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. But he still says so. There was no link between Saddam Hussein and al Qaida.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keith-olbermann/there-were-no-weapons-of-mass-destruction-in-iraq-but-he-still-says/) [Keith Olbermann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keith-olbermann/) > [There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that Saddam Hussein had and used significant weapons of mass destruction on his own people, both…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/curt-weldon/there-is-absolutely-no-doubt-in-my-mind-that-saddam-hussein-had-and/) [Curt Weldon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/curt-weldon/) > [It remains our policy to change the regime until such time as the regime changes itself. So far, we cannot be sure that he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-powell/it-remains-our-policy-to-change-the-regime-until-such-time-as-the/) [Colin Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-powell/) ## More by Charles Krauthammer > [Obama and the Democrats were so critical of what Bush did, the interrogations, the secret prisons, Guantanamo and all of that, and even the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-krauthammer/obama-and-the-democrats-were-so-critical-of-what-bush-did-the/) [Charles Krauthammer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-krauthammer/) > [“America is the most welcoming, religiously tolerant, philo-semitic country in the world. No nation since Cyrus the Great’s Persia has done more for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-krauthammer/america-is-the-most-welcoming-religiously-tolerant-philo-semitic/) [Charles Krauthammer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-krauthammer/) > [I believe in what I believe, and I think after all these years I've heard a lot of arguments, and I'm convinced by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-krauthammer/i-believe-in-what-i-believe-and-i-think-after-all-these-years-i-ve/) [Charles Krauthammer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-krauthammer/) > [With our financial house on fire, Obama makes clear both in in his speech and his budget that the essence of his presidency will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-krauthammer/with-our-financial-house-on-fire-obama-makes-clear-both-in-in-his/) [Charles Krauthammer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-krauthammer/) > [The conservative idea is not that government has no role. You might have argued that in the thirties when conservatives opposed the New Deal.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-krauthammer/the-conservative-idea-is-not-that-government-has-no-role-you-might/) [Charles Krauthammer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-krauthammer/) > [The war is not going well and it is time to say why. It has been fought with half-measures. It has been fought with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-krauthammer/the-war-is-not-going-well-and-it-is-time-to-say-why-it-has-been/) [Charles Krauthammer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-krauthammer/) > [“International stability is never a given. It is never the norm. When achieved, it is the product of self-conscious action by the great powers,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-krauthammer/international-stability-is-never-a-given-it-is-never-the-norm-when/) [Charles Krauthammer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-krauthammer/) > [Look, I don't mind if the President sends a budget which he knows is not going to achieve anything. But when he prefaces his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-krauthammer/look-i-don-t-mind-if-the-president-sends-a-budget-which-he-knows-is/) [Charles Krauthammer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-krauthammer/) > [“Politics is the moat, the walls, beyond which lie the barbarians. Fail to keep them at bay, and everything burns.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-krauthammer/politics-is-the-moat-the-walls-beyond-which-lie-the-barbarians-fail/) [Charles Krauthammer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-krauthammer/) > [Don't touch my junk, you airport security goon--my package belongs to no one but me, and do you really think I'm a Nigerian nut…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-krauthammer/don-t-touch-my-junk-you-airport-security-goon-my-package-belongs-to/) [Charles Krauthammer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-krauthammer/) > [“The Russian Revolution and its imitators (Chinese, Cuban, Vietnamese, Cambodian) tried to atomize society so thoroughly--to war against the mediating structures that stand between…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-krauthammer/the-russian-revolution-and-its-imitators-chinese-cuban-vietnamese/) [Charles Krauthammer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-krauthammer/) > [Where religion is trivialized, one is unlikely to find persecution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-krauthammer/where-religion-is-trivialized-one-is-unlikely-to-find-persecution/) [Charles Krauthammer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-krauthammer/) > [We must now brace ourselves for disquisitions on peer pressure, adolescent anomie, and rage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-krauthammer/we-must-now-brace-ourselves-for-disquisitions-on-peer-pressure/) [Charles Krauthammer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-krauthammer/) > [Post-Watergate morality, by which anything left private is taken as presumptive evidence of wrongdoing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-krauthammer/post-watergate-morality-by-which-anything-left-private-is-taken-as/) [Charles Krauthammer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-krauthammer/) > [“The largest threat to freedom, democracy, the market economy and prosperity,' warns Czech president Vaclav Klaus, 'is no longer socialism. It is, instead, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-krauthammer/the-largest-threat-to-freedom-democracy-the-market-economy-and/) [Charles Krauthammer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-krauthammer/) [Explore all 268 Charles Krauthammer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-krauthammer/) ## More Aggressive quotes > [So the fool, as distinct from the scoundrel, is completely self- satisfied; in fact, he can easily become dangerous, as it does not take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dietrich-bonhoeffer/so-the-fool-as-distinct-from-the-scoundrel-is-completely-self/) [Dietrich Bonhoeffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dietrich-bonhoeffer/) > [Because of the womb being a central phenomenon in the feminine body, the whole psychology of woman differs: she is non-aggressive, non-inquiring, non-questioning, non-doubting,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajneesh/because-of-the-womb-being-a-central-phenomenon-in-the-feminine-body/) [Rajneesh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajneesh/) > [Good girls don't hurt other people's feelings. Good girls are not overly aggressive, competitive, or boastful. Good girls please others. But what good girls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-jane-gilman/good-girls-don-t-hurt-other-people-s-feelings-good-girls-are-not/) [Susan Jane Gilman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-jane-gilman/) > [It’s a shameful moment for U.S. media when it insists on being subservient to the grotesque propaganda agencies of a violent, aggressive state.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/it-s-a-shameful-moment-for-u-s-media-when-it-insists-on-being/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [“Passive...Aggressive...Pussy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-azzarello/passive-aggressive-pussy/) [Brian Azzarello](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-azzarello/) > [I'm not a fan of endless mystery in storytelling - I like to know where the mythology's going; I like to get there in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-kripke/i-m-not-a-fan-of-endless-mystery-in-storytelling-i-like-to-know-where/) [Eric Kripke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-kripke/) > [Most conservatives - by which I mean normal people - have little conception of the aggressive and revolutionary force that confronts them. It is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-bethell/most-conservatives-by-which-i-mean-normal-people-have-little/) [Tom Bethell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-bethell/) > [If I serve good and play aggressive from the baseline, I can beat everyone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/karolina-pliskova/if-i-serve-good-and-play-aggressive-from-the-baseline-i-can-beat/) [Karolina Pliskova](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/karolina-pliskova/) > [I'm just trying to be aggressive. Be aggressive with my shot. Be aggressive going to the rim.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamal-murray/i-m-just-trying-to-be-aggressive-be-aggressive-with-my-shot-be/) [Jamal Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamal-murray/) > [I see other teams playing aggressive, attacking football, they are games I switch on and watch. They are the football teams I want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angelos-postecoglou/i-see-other-teams-playing-aggressive-attacking-football-they-are/) [Angelos Postecoglou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angelos-postecoglou/) > [You cannot will yourself to be happy while believing that you have no right to happiness, or that you are unworthy of it. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-roberts/you-cannot-will-yourself-to-be-happy-while-believing-that-you-have-no/) [Jane Roberts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-roberts/) > [I have definitely noticed I am very passionate. So if I'm fighting with someone I'll be SO super loud and aggressive, and make sure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melanie-martinez/i-have-definitely-noticed-i-am-very-passionate-so-if-i-m-fighting/) [Melanie Martinez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melanie-martinez/) > [ I think the president's \[Barack Obama\] position has been very clear on Syria. He wants more aggressive, he's put the Special Ops on the… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juan-williams/i-think-the-president-s-barack-obama-position-has-been-very-clear-on/) [Juan Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juan-williams/) > [As Americans, we want peace - we work and sacrifice for peace. But there can be no peace if our security depends on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/as-americans-we-want-peace-we-work-and-sacrifice-for-peace-but-there/) [George W. 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