What is a legitimate basis for invasion? How does something become legitimate? :) :)

But to the OP, war is the use of force to achieve political objectives. In this case it was the continuation of our policy of protecting the mideast oil.

I think he lied but not about the WMD. No one and I mean no one did not believe that Saddam had WMD. But it wasnt the real reason we went to war just as we didnt goto to Gulf I to liberate Kuwait, as FDR didn't try to keep us out of wwii, as Wilson didn't 'keep us out' of WWI.

Foreign policy is tough business and few want to understand or be persuaded. It's usually just easier to not necessarily lie perhaps but not really say what you are doing.

We went to Gulf I because it was stted US policy to protect mideast oil. We had to leave basis to protect the no fly zones and be a deterrent to saddam. But this angered Al Queda that infidels were on Holy land. They attacked and we had to figure out how to solve this puzzle. Get rid of Saddam. Move basis. End of destabilization.

This also has the benefit of using an agent state to use soft power on an 'ally'. By converting Iraq to a successful democracy, we can hope that they will export libertarian values to the reagion and in particular Saudi Arabia.