Bush steps up the pressure

Breakfast's main story this morning came from the United States.

President Bush has told Americans that they will fight - and win - if Saddam Hussein doesn't fully disarm - and they'll do it without the backing of the UN if they have to.

This morning, we analysed President Bush's State of the Union Speech in detail and asked whether it makes the case for war.

We also asked whether it had changed your mind.

click here to read your comments on President Bush's State of the Union speech

We analysed the case for military action, with Jack Spencer of the right-wing think tank, The Heritage Foundation.

Spencer: weapons will be found

"We have to put faith in our leaders that there are weapons of mass destruction," he told us.

"I am sure that once Saddam Hussein has gone, many weapons will be uncovered in Iraq."

click here to watch our interview in full with Jack Spencer

For the international view, we turned to David Clark. He worked as an adviser to the former Foreign Secretary Robin Cook.

Clarke: international scepticism

"The speech was long on rhetoric and short on facts," he told Breakfast. "It was primarily for a domestic audience."

"The link between al-Qaeda was clearly made rhetorically but at the moment it will be treated with a fair degree of scepticism internationally until it is proved."

click here to watch our interview in full with David Clarke

To find out where American foreign policy is heading, we talked to James Rubin, who was one of the key aides to America's previous President, Bill Clinton.

Rubin: war is weeks, not months away

"The American people are probably more supportive of war on Iraq than here in Britain, " he told us.

"But they have two questions: why is it so urgent? Can't we wait until a link is proven between Saddam and al-Qaeda if it brings us more support?

"And their second question is about the economy."

James Rubin believes that war is probably weeks away - although there's still a faint chance that it could be avoided if other Arab states persuade Saddam Hussein to go.

"What the President did last night is make the case for urgency.

"If we wait six months or a year we face an increased risk that the chemical, biological and nuclear weapons which are in Iraq will get into the wrong hands."

click here to watch Breakfast's interview in full with James Rubin

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