In 2008, President Bush issued a signing statement, declaring that he would ignore any law that prohibited using federal funds "to establish any military installation or base for the purpose of providing for the permanent stationing of United States Armed Forces in Iraq" or "to exercise United States control of the oil resources of Iraq." According to former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, the United States did not need to invade Iraq to control the oil. The New York Times reports that in February 2003, Baghdad had offered to give the US first priority as it related to Iraq oil rights, as part of a deal to avert an impending invasion. The overtures intrigued the Bush administration but were ultimately rebuffed. The primary reason for invading Iraq, according to those attending NSC briefings in 2002, was "to create a demonstration model" to deter anyone with the temerity to "flout the authority of the United States" in any way.