Thomas Powers is skeptical about our attempt to kill Saddam Hussein, calling it “a campaign with no precedents in American history.” First, I’d note that attempts to kill foreign leaders are hardly new. Just off the top of my head, Hitler, Castro, Diem, Allende, and Khaddafy have been targets of US-backed or US-led attempts. Second, if war against tyrants can be just, even though they result in the deaths of soldiers and innocent civilians, then surely killing the tyrant himself is just.









