The 2003 State of the Union Address was a speech delivered by U.S. President

President of the United States

The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....

 George W. Bush

George W. Bush

George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....

 on Tuesday, January 28, 2003. It outlined justifications for the 2003 invasion of Iraq

2003 invasion of Iraq

The 2003 invasion of Iraq , was the start of the conflict known as the Iraq War, or Operation Iraqi Freedom, in which a combined force of troops from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Poland invaded Iraq and toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein in 21 days of major combat operations...

. It began his discussion of the "war on terror

War on Terror

The War on Terror is a term commonly applied to an international military campaign led by the United States and the United Kingdom with the support of other North Atlantic Treaty Organisation as well as non-NATO countries...

" by asserting, as he had before September 11, 2001, that "the gravest danger facing America and the world, is outlaw regimes that seek and possess nuclear, chemical and biological weapons." Of such regimes, that of Saddam Hussein

Saddam Hussein

Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...

 was the worst, and "a brutal dictator, with a history of reckless aggression, with ties to terrorism, with great potential wealth, will not be permitted to dominate a vital region and threaten the United States." The domestic brutality of Hussein and the benefits of liberty and freedom for the Iraqi people were briefly noted near the end of the speech.

The Democratic response was given by then Washington Governor, and future Secretary of Commerce, Gary Locke

Gary Locke

Gary Locke may refer to:*Gary Locke , Chinese American politician; U.S. Secretary of Commerce and former Governor of Washington*Gary Locke *Gary Locke...

.

See also

• State of the Union
  State Of The Union
  "State Of The Union" is the debut single from British singer-songwriter David Ford. It had previously been featured as a demo on his official website, before appearing as a track on a CD entitled "Apology Demos EP," only on sale at live shows....
  
  
• George W. Bush
  George W. Bush
  George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
  
  
• President of the United States
  President of the United States
  The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
  
  
• "16 words" – a controversial phrase in George W. Bush's 2003 State of the Union Address

External links

• Entire 2003 State of the Union address (video) at C-SPAN