President George W. Bush’s most controversial major speech was his Second State of the UnionAddress, delivered January 29, 2002, and commonly known as the “axis of evil” speech. In this address, given just over four months after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, Bush focuses on the aftermath of the attacks and on the war in Afghanistan. He names three nations that he believes to be in possession of chemical and biological weapons arsenals, developing nuclear weapons, or sponsoring terror groups. He dubs these nations—North Korea, Iran, and Iraq-an “axis of evil” and promises that the United States will take preemptive and immediate action to prevent proliferation of global terrorism networks.