Desperation is the mother of...
Saddam may hand power to his son to avoid attack, according to the Times:
SADDAM HUSSEIN is considering stepping down as the Iraqi head of state in favour of his younger son in an attempt to counter the growing threat to his regime from the Bush Administration.Arab diplomats in Baghdad said that the Iraqi leader may not seek re-election in the presidential vote due later this year but instead allow Qusay Hussein, his heir apparent, to become the country’s leader.
The Iraqi dictator, who has ruled unopposed for three decades, would remain in de facto control, much as the late Chinese leader Deng Xaioping. But the tactic may satisfy the Americans, or at least to delay their planned military action aimed at a change of regime in Baghdad by next year. “The word in the diplomatic community is that when the elections are being prepared this autumn, Saddam will not put his name forward but instead allow Qusay to go forward,” one diplomat said. “The aim would be to deflate the American threat.”