While there have been several articles like this, one sentence at the end of the first paragraph caught my attention: " The administration is quietly trying to get these bills passed now, while the public’s attention is on the elections, so our action on this is needed immediately."
Previous articles were only about bills introduced in Congress that had very little support from most senators and representatives, and never said anything about Bush and Co pushing them. Any truth to this, or is it just FUD from paranoid folks on the left?
It’s true enough that the Administration would like to have the mechanism for a draft in place - so have the last several. That’s why 18 year olds are required to register.
However, “quietly pushing” to get the bills passed? This IS an election year and not a single Democrat in Congress is going to let an issue like reinstating the draft slip through the process without notice.
Senate Bill 89 - Title: A bill to provide for the common defense by requiring that all young persons in the United States, including women, perform a period of military service or a period of civilian service in furtherance of the national defense and homeland security, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Sen Hollings, Ernest F. [SC] (introduced 1/7/2003) Cosponsors (None)
Related Bills: H.R.163
Latest Major Action: 1/7/2003 Referred to Senate committee. Status: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Armed Services.
House Resolution 163 - Title: To provide for the common defense by requiring that all young persons in the United States, including women, perform a period of military service or a period of civilian service in furtherance of the national defense and homeland security, and for other purposes.
Sponsor: Rep Rangel, Charles B. [NY-15] (introduced 1/7/2003) Cosponsors (14)
Related Bills: S.89
Latest Major Action: 2/3/2003 House committee/subcommittee actions. Status: Executive Comment Requested from DOD.
Really? You should note thay both bills were introducted by Democrats, and if I am accurate in my assessment of both, neither are darlings of the Bush Administration. Also, if you believe passage of these bills will escape the People (a possibility) or the Media (Faux News isn’t reporting it?) because of the elections, think again. Both bills are dead in committee.
I am SO glad that these bills include women! I’ve long held that women should be drafted if they ever institute it again. Maybe we’ll be more careful about our military response in the future if a draft is instituted.
It seems to me that the only people in Congress that are pushing for a draft are Democrats - none of the Republicans have said a word about restarting it.
There has been some Op-Ed articles about this in my local newspaper, all pro-draft of course. (It’s so right wing…)
I am puzzled as to the lack of response to all this. The draft was a major issue in the Vietnam era. Bringing it back and screwing up everybody’s life isn’t going to be popular. We clearly don’t need anywhere near that many troops this side of a ground war with the PRC. Of what possible use is such a large standing army going to be?
Aren’t we still in “3 months, 6 tops” mode in Iraq?
Why does the draft bill have to pass this year? What’s being planned for 2005?
And where is the money for training and supporting this immense army going to magically appear from?
The OP specifically asked if the Administration was “pushing” to get the bills passed. Even though Democrats did introduce the bills now dead in committee, if the Administration tried to revive them, Democrats would certainly point it out. Even Hollings and Rangel would be saying “I told you so!”
To get away from politics, it is the Bush Administration’s oft-stated position that the U.S. does not need a draft to fill its military needs.
Since Rangel and Hollings both know the bills have no chance of passing, they obviously did this as a scare tactic to drum up opposition to the current mission in Iraq.
Why haven’t you hread more response to this? Because these bills were introduced by Democrats. The President does not want to reinstate the draft, the Vice-President does not want to reinstate the draft, Karl Rove does not want to reinstate the draft, the Secretary of Defense does not want to reinstate the draft, the Pentagon does not want to reinstate the draft, the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps do not want to reinstate the draft, the Republican-controlled Senate does not want to reinstate the draft, the Republican-controlled House of Representatives does not want to reinstate the draft, the American people don’t want to reinstate the draft.
There isn’t going to be a draft, that’s why you haven’t heard anything about it. The President cannot reinstate the draft, it would take an act of congress. And congress cannot “quietly” reinstate the draft, which you would realize if you took a moment to think instead of panicking. Don’t you think that there would be some members of congress opposed to the draft? Oh, like most members of the Democratic party? Don’t you think they would mention something if the Republicans were trying to get a bill passed that would reinstate the draft.
There is no need to find money to support and train the vast army of draftees because, get this: THERE WILL BE NO FUCKING DRAFT.
Many of us who came of age during the Vietnam/Watergate era, during which time we all learned that some of our government officials evidently don’t have a problem with lying to us, feel that the whole “Vietnam war” thing was foisted on us, and feel that the whole “Grenada war” thing was foisted on us, and feel that the whole “Somalia peacekeeping” thing was foisted on us, and feel that the whole “Bosnia peacekeeping” thing was foisted on us, and feel that the whole “Afghanistan war” thing was foisted on us, and feel that the whole "Iraq war’ thing was foisted on us…and we have no problem at all in visualizing a renewed military draft also being foisted on us by government officials, of either party, who don’t have a problem with lying to us.
Many of us who came of age during the Vietnam/Watergate era, during which time we all learned that some of our government officials evidently don’t have a problem with lying to us, now have teenage children, who would be at risk from a new military draft.
Just for the sake of accuracy, the draft preceded Viet Nam – it was never discontinued after WWII.
Viet Nam was not foisted on anyone – there was long and public debate on American involvement. In my opinion, entry into Viet Nam was highly influenced by the relative success of the Korean campaign. After saving South Korea from what was clearly a rapacious and cruel enemy a mere 10 years before Viet Nam began to heat up, it was thought we could save South Viet nam, as well.
The bitter experience in Viet Nam ende the draft, with the idea being that the prosecution of any war had to be popular enough the volunteers would fill the ranks.
We have enough volunteers today; in fact, many young volunteers are turned away because their high school GPA’s are not high enough or they have police record.
And it is the Democrats pushing for a draft, not Bush and the Republicans, as has been noted.
Lynnwood Slim, you cannot determine for me what was foisted upon me. One of the definitions:
I will not argue with you about having to accept the death of a friend or a war I didn’t believe in while being lied to by the leaders of my own country. McNamara confessed.
All of them? Most of them? More than I can count on one hand?
I share Duck Duck Goose’s concerns because there has been a draft for most of my life. That puts a different perspective on it. It is not unthinkable.
But what concerns me even more are comments that I heard on one of the news programs (sorry, – no cite) that claimed that some members of our military are being told to reenlist or they will be sent to Iraq. Has anyone else heard this?
why would ANY democrats want the draft reinstated? Wouldnt that be a Cardinal Sin since they seem to be running on an anti-war message this year for election?
People hear that a bill to start a draft is in Congress, and without researching who started the bill, panic, think “oh no, Bush is going to try and draft my son, I don’t want to vote for him, ect.” As the OP suggested, it is FUD from the Democrats.
Some Democrats believe that a draft would make wars less popular - with a draft, you can’t say “They all volunteered for it.” Of course, we had a draft before Vietnam, and that didn’t stop us from entering that war.
Some people (I’m not sure if Opal is one of these) think a draft would make it more likely for rich and influential people to have their sons in the draft(the idea being this would stop those rich & influential people from pushing for a war).
