Tell me something

I'd like this question answered if possible: Did Bush plan to attack Iraq before he got elected or at least shortly after. I'd like to, courtesy of http://www.capitolhillblue.com/artman/publish/article_7980.shtml , give some quotes from Bush and you can decide this:

“We will confront weapons of mass destruction, so that a new century is spared new horrors,” Bush said in his inaugural address on Jan. 20, 2001.

On January 21, Bush held his first meeting of the National Security Council in the White House. At that meeting he ordered the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff to draw up plans for an invasion of Iraq as, he said, “a contingency.”

On February 16, in a press conference with Mexican president Vicente Fox, Bush said:

“Saddam Hussein has got to understand that we expect him to conform to the agreement that he signed after Desert Storm. We will enforce the no-fly zone, both south and north. Our intention is to make sure that the world is as peaceful as possible. And we're going to watch very carefully as to whether or not he develops weapons of mass destruction, and if we catch him doing so we'll take the appropriate action.”

On February 23, in a press conference with British Prime Minister Tony Blair, Bush said:

“We spent a lot of time talking about our mutual interests in Iraq and the Persian Gulf, and from our perspective, as you know, I made the famous statement that our sanctions are like Swiss cheese. That means they're not very effective. And we're going to work together to figure out a way to make them more effective. But I think the Prime Minister and I both recognize that it is going to be important for us to build a consensus in the region to make the sanctions more effective. Colin Powell left today, after lunch, to move around the Middle East, collect thoughts and to listen, with a policy of strengthening our mission to make it clear to Saddam Hussein that he shall not terrorize his neighbors, and not develop weapons of mass destruction.”

On May 21, Bush spoke at the Naval Academy in Annapolis:

“Today, nearly one-third of our naval forces are forward-deployed overseas. The USS Constellation carrier battle group and its 10,000 sailors are plying the waters of the Persian Gulf, enforcing the no-fly zone over southern Iraq. Another 3,800 sailors and Marines stand guard nearby with the Boxer amphibious ready group, deterring any mischief Saddam might contemplate.”

If anything, Osama bin Laden was a diversion from Bush’s obsession with Hussein, a problem that got in the way.

On September 11, 2001, as Air Force One headed out of Florida, Bush turned to chief of staff Andrew Card and said “find out how soon we can be ready to go into Iraq.”

Card told him that preliminary reports pointed towards bin Laden and Afghanistan.

“Forget fucking Afghanistan,” Bush responded. “Hussein is behind this. I know it. We’re going into Iraq.”

Aides who overheard Bush’s outburst say Card hustled him away and talked for Bush for more than 30 minutes in private. After that, Bush talked more about bin Laden and less about Hussein.

Sounds to me like Bush had an obsession with Hussein. You can though be the judge and oh yeah whatever happened to Osama he's still out there isn't he?