The US defending itself from IRAQ, are you kidding me?
How could poor Iraq attack the US(the biggest military on the planet) 7,000 miles away? With its non-existing WMDs?
He still was a arab nationalist seen as secular by fellow arabs. Why don't you denounce Saudi Arabia, the home of the radical doctrine of Wahabism? Because, it's an US ally. There is no morality in US foreign policy.
But no relationship between Saddam Hussein and Al-Qaida or the 9/11 attacks could be established. George W. Bush claiming he was harboring Al-Qaida was another lie.
The US is responsible for the sectarian violence in Iraq, they put the Shia in charge of the country who persecuted the Sunni population and old Baathists. The Sunni insurgency was a logical consequence, and Al-Qaida of Iraq simply took advantage of the anarchy, proclaiming a Sunni-Caliphate(Islamic State). And thanks for strenthening ISIS military capabilities with american military equipment left behind.