this article, about saddam hussein's preparation (or lack thereof) in the lead up to and early days of the war, only confirms that saddam wasn't interested in fighting the u.s. it's quite revealing to note that while the u.s. was threatening to invade, saddam was worried about strengthening his border defenses against an attack from iran. when the u.s. bombing started and coalition forces swarmed into southern iraq, saddam was mostly concerned about a shiite uprising in the south.
only a couple of months later, howard dean was heavily criticized for saying "the capture of Saddam has not made America safer." at the time, many political commentators seemed to view the statement as a blunder (e.g.). but it's pretty clear now that dean was right. apparently the man would not focus on fighting the u.s. even after the invasion had started and saddam himself had been personally targeted in two attempted decapitating strikes. his crazy obsession was staying in power, not fighting the u.s. ironically, that obsession only hastened his fall.
