Saddam Hussein To strengthen his own position within the government, Qasim created an alliance with the Iraqi Communist Party, which was opposed to any notion of pan-Arabism. Later that year, the Ba'ath Party leadership was planning to assassinate Qasim. Saddam was a leading member of the operation. At the time, the Ba'ath Party was more of an ideological experiment than a strong anti-government fighting machine. The majority of its members were either educated professionals or students, and Saddam fit the bill. The choice of Saddam was, according to historian Con Coughlin, "hardly surprising". The idea of assassinating Qasim may have been Nasser's,
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