On this day, Dec. 29 ... 2006: Word reaches the United States of the execution of former Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein. (Because of the time difference, it is the morning of Dec. 30 in Iraq when the hanging takes place.) In a statement, President George W. Bush calls Saddam’s execution an important milestone on Iraq’s road to democracy. Also on this day: 1170: Thomas Becket, the Archbishop of Canterbury, is slain in Canterbury Cathedral by knights loyal to King Henry II. 1808: Andrew Johnson, the 17th president of the United States, is born in Raleigh, N.C. 1845: Texas is admitted as the 28th state.