The Gist

On Saddam Hussein’s Case

Former CIA analyst John Nixon spent years studying former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein—his rise to power, his frustration with the U.S., his bad poetry.

Saddam Hussein at a courtroom in Camp Victory outside Baghdad on July 1, 2004.

Laurent Van der Stockt/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images

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John Nixon was the lead CIA analyst tasked with studying Saddam Hussein during the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq. It fell to Nixon to identify Hussein when he was captured, interrogate him while in U.S. custody, and present what he learned to the Bush White House. Nixon’s book is Debriefing the President: The Interrogation of Saddam Hussein.

In the Spiel: Don’t blame the provocateur, blame his followers.

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