On September 20, 2002, “the [Bush] administration released a document that effectively served as its philosophical justification for a preemptive use of force in Iraq. Entitled ‘The National Security Strategy of the United States of America,’ the document was required by Congress of each president as a statement of administration policy. This one, supervised by [National Security Advisor Condoleezza] Rice and written by her old friend and colleague Phil Zelikow, codified the central themes of Bush’s address at West Point the previous June [1, 2002]: Preemption was to be the new foundation of American defense, relegating containment and deterrence to the side as outdated. ‘As a matter of common sense and self-defense, America will act against such emerging threats before they are fully formed,’ the document stated in an opening section that was signed by Bush.”
– Elisabeth Bumiller, Condoleezza Rice: An American Life, Page 193