Only one remains at all credible: the need to transform the Middle East through democratization and thereby undercut support for terrorists. But does this argument really have any more basis in reality than the administration’s previous claims of an “imminent” threat from weapons of mass destruction or Saddam Hussein’s alleged support for al‑Qaeda?
布什政府发动伊拉克战争有三个重要的理论依据，其中只有一条似乎还站得住脚：那就是对中东进行民主化改造，并以此来削弱恐怖分子的根基。但与美国政府先前提出的大规模杀伤性武器迫在眉睫的危机或萨达姆·侯赛因支持基地组织的指控相比，这条理由在现实中真能站得住脚吗？