The Challenge of Iraq

Since the terrible events of 11 September 2001, the United States has come to sense a degree of terrorist threat unequaled in its history. The rise of these threats has brought into focus an array of other types of challenges to national security which have lain dormant for a number of years, but which some analysts believe may be related to the immediate problems stemming from the “9/11” episode. Federal law-enforcement officials have long denied that they could locate clear evidence of such connection in the case of Iraq, but the President’s elevated concern for the overall security of the country necessitates a thorough and wide-reaching examination of the dimensions of all such threats. This analysis seeks to fulfill that objective.