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CNN Live Sunday
Rumsfeld Speaks Out on Iraqi WMDs, Saddam Hussein
Aired May 04, 2003 - 18:06 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld says he is not frustrated at all, his words, by the lack of evidence so far on weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Now, he also spoke out today about the fate of Saddam Hussein.
Here's CNN's Chris Plante.
CHRIS PLANTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Anderson.
That's right. The...
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PLANTE (voice-over): After weeks of scouring Iraq for weapons of mass destruction and for proof of Saddam Hussein's fate, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld tells CNN that he still doesn't know for sure whether the former dictator is dead or alive.
DONALD RUMSFELD, U.S. SECY. OF DEFENSE: If you don't have evidence he's dead, you've probably got to assume he's alive. But I know there are lots of places that they're looking and a lot of people they're talking to, and if he's alive, we'll find him.
PLANTE: The same is true for Saddam Hussein's sons, Uday and Qusay, both of whom held senior posts in the regime and had reputations for brutality.
Pentagon sources tell CNN they may have escaped through neighboring Syria and Secretary Rumsfeld concedes that may make them hard to find.
RUMSFELD: They had stolen so much money from the Iraqi people that they had the wherewithal to do lots of things.
PLANTE: As for the fate of U.S. troops now occupying Iraq, the defense chief refused to be pinned down on how long they might have to stay.
RUMSFELD: We're going to have as many people in there as we need for as long as we need them. We will also have as few people as possible, but as many as are necessary, and we'll stay as short a time as is possible, but as long as is necessary.
PLANTE: As for whether France, Germany and Russia will play a war in post-war Iraq after opposing the military action, he said that decision belongs to President Bush, but... RUMSFELD: We would not want people involved who wanted to behave in an unconstructive way.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PLANTE: Secretary Rumsfeld also insists, as they have continued to do over time, that they don't expect that they'll simply stumble across these weapons of mass destruction sites, but that Iraqi officials or perhaps ordinary Iraqi citizens will eventually lead the coalition units to these sites and they will be able to make the case to the world that the regime was hiding the banned weapons from the United Nations and the world -- Anderson.
COOPER: All right. Chris Plante, at the Pentagon, thanks very much.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired May 4, 2003 - 18:06 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld says he is not frustrated at all, his words, by the lack of evidence so far on weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Now, he also spoke out today about the fate of Saddam Hussein.
Here's CNN's Chris Plante.
CHRIS PLANTE, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Anderson.
That's right. The...
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PLANTE (voice-over): After weeks of scouring Iraq for weapons of mass destruction and for proof of Saddam Hussein's fate, Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld tells CNN that he still doesn't know for sure whether the former dictator is dead or alive.
DONALD RUMSFELD, U.S. SECY. OF DEFENSE: If you don't have evidence he's dead, you've probably got to assume he's alive. But I know there are lots of places that they're looking and a lot of people they're talking to, and if he's alive, we'll find him.
PLANTE: The same is true for Saddam Hussein's sons, Uday and Qusay, both of whom held senior posts in the regime and had reputations for brutality.
Pentagon sources tell CNN they may have escaped through neighboring Syria and Secretary Rumsfeld concedes that may make them hard to find.
RUMSFELD: They had stolen so much money from the Iraqi people that they had the wherewithal to do lots of things.
PLANTE: As for the fate of U.S. troops now occupying Iraq, the defense chief refused to be pinned down on how long they might have to stay.
RUMSFELD: We're going to have as many people in there as we need for as long as we need them. We will also have as few people as possible, but as many as are necessary, and we'll stay as short a time as is possible, but as long as is necessary.
PLANTE: As for whether France, Germany and Russia will play a war in post-war Iraq after opposing the military action, he said that decision belongs to President Bush, but... RUMSFELD: We would not want people involved who wanted to behave in an unconstructive way.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
PLANTE: Secretary Rumsfeld also insists, as they have continued to do over time, that they don't expect that they'll simply stumble across these weapons of mass destruction sites, but that Iraqi officials or perhaps ordinary Iraqi citizens will eventually lead the coalition units to these sites and they will be able to make the case to the world that the regime was hiding the banned weapons from the United Nations and the world -- Anderson.
COOPER: All right. Chris Plante, at the Pentagon, thanks very much.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
