By Carl Weiser
Enquirer Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON - Rep. Steve Chabot turned on the TV at 7 a.m. Sunday, planning to check on the news and catch himself on the pre-taped "Hotseat" show on WCPO-TV (Channel 9.)

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Instead, the Westwood Republican saw a live press conference from Iraq. Oh no, he thought: There's been another terrorist attack. Then he saw at the bottom of the screen, "Saddam captured." His reaction: relief.

"I'm very, very pleased by what I would consider a very important development in our war against international terrorism," Chabot said.

Rep. Rob Portman, closest in the delegation to the Bush White House, called it a "great day" for Iraqis.

"The capture of Saddam is proof to the world that freedom and liberty will triumph over oppression and tyranny," said the Terrace Park Republican.

Added Rep. John Boehner, R-Ohio: "Today's news represents a huge step forward in the war on terrorism.''

Rep. Mike Turner, a freshman Republican who represents northern Warren County, was recently in Iraq to meet with U.S. troops.

"They told us that his capture was imminent and that they were able to react in an instant,'' Turner said. "They said that many times they were within two hours of capturing him. I could see by the look in their eyes that they were determined to complete their mission."

All 13 House and Senate members of the Tristate congressional delegation supported the resolution giving Bush authority to wage war against Iraq.

Cincinnati had played a role in the run-up to the war, hosting a major prime time speech by President Bush on the dangers Saddam Hussein posed the world.

In that Oct. 7, 2002, speech at the Cincinnati Museum Center at Union Terminal, Bush called Saddam a "murderous tyrant" and said he threatened Americans by harboring terrorists pursuing nuclear, chemical and biological weapons.

The capture of Saddam Hussein should help President Bush and the war's supporters show the war was a success, they said.

"Sure won't do him any harm" in the 2004 election, said Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky. "That was the whole reason for the war - to get Saddam Hussein. And now we've got him. We have now conclusively and demonstrably got rid of the problem that was the reason for the war."

Kentucky Sen. Jim Bunning, a devout Catholic, suggested a divine hand in Saddam's capture.

"You talk about finding a needle in the haystack. They find him in a hole. That's a miracle,'' Bunning said. ''Whether you know it or not, somebody higher than the commander of that force was guiding those people.''

Bunning also sees a positive for Bush politically.

"I think everybody wondered if we ever were going to catch him, and now we have. I think the stick-to-itiveness, the steady-as-she-goes, the not wavering, is bound to help him.''

Sen. Richard Lugar of Indiana, who chairs the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said Saddam's capture was an important victory for Bush.

"Again and again many people in America - a minority, but a substantial one - were saying that Americans are losing their lives in unacceptable numbers, that it's not worth it ... that we're out of there," the Republican said. "My guess is today that if people are polled, they will say, stay the course."

Ohio's two Republican senators said the capture could mean more American troops coming home sooner.

"This is a day of liberation for Iraq," said Sen. Mike DeWine. "It has great psychological impact on the people of Iraq. It advances the day that our troops will be able to come home."

Sen. George Voinovich, said Saddam's capture would bring "a new era of cooperation" from Iraqis.

"Hopefully, now we can shift more responsibility for securing the country to the Iraqi people and bring home more of our men and women stationed there," he said.

Indiana Rep. Baron Hill, D-Seymour, whose district includes southern Dearborn County, praised the mettle of the troops in a difficult situation.

"Saddam Hussein's capture will allow us to move forward with building a free and democratic Iraq without the specter of Saddam's long shadow hanging over the process."

Rep. Ken Lucas, a Kentucky Democrat who supported the war but recently said he felt misled by Bush, was traveling to Europe and the Middle East with a delegation from the House Homeland Security Committee, spokesman Joe Clabes said.

He was scheduled to visit Spain, Syria, Israel, and Turkey, but not Iraq, Clabes said.

"He was not involved in the capture,'' said a joking Clabes.

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E-mail cweiser@gannett.com. Contributing: Maureen Groppe, GNS