Saddam Hussein deputy leader in a union, and this would drive Saddam to obscurity. Saddam acted to secure his grip on power. He forced the ailing al-Bakr to resign on 16 July 1979, and formally assumed the presidency. Saddam convened an assembly of Ba'ath party leaders on 22 July 1979. During the assembly, which he ordered videotaped, Saddam claimed to have found a fifth column within the Ba'ath Party and directed Muhyi Abdel-Hussein to read out a confession and the names of 68 alleged co-conspirators. These members were labelled "disloyal" and were removed from the room one by one and taken into
Saddam Hussein many feelings and he was very tender with all of us." With the intention of discrediting Saddam Hussein with his supporters, CIA was considering making a video in which he would be seen having sex with a teenager. In 1979, Rev. Jacob Yasso of Chaldean Sacred Heart Church congratulated Saddam Hussein on his presidency. In return, Rev. Yasso said that Saddam Hussein donated US$250,000 to his church, which is made up of at least 1,200 families of Middle Eastern descent. In 1980, Detroit Mayor Coleman Young allowed Rev. Yasso to present the key to the city of Detroit to Saddam