After a speech at the Discovery Institute in Seattle, Washington, on August 14, 1992, Secretary of Defense Dick Cheney was asked about his opinion on Saddam, who was still in power in Iraq. Cheney replied: ” ‘My own personal view continues to be one that he is not likely to survive as the leader of Iraq. …he’s got a shrinking political base inside Iraq. He doesn’t control the northern part of his country. His economy is a shambles. The UN sanctions continue to place great pressure on him. We’ve had these reports of an attempted coup at the end of June, early July, against him. I think he–I think his days are numbered.’ ”
– Stephen F. Hayes, Cheney, Page 249