1. Should The U.S. Draft Be Reinstated?
Anthony Holly, Christina Jones, Nicole Lewis, Nicholas Wade

2. The U.S. Draft What exactly is it?
The US Draft is when the government uses a lottery system to summon most men aged to serve in the military
Only occurs when the military needs more troops than they have with volunteers
Has to be passed by congress and the president
The military is currently all volunteer although most men are required to register for selective service within 30 days of their 18th birthday
These men could all potentially have to serve in the military should the draft be reinstated
The US uses a volunteer service, while most other countries use universal conscription, which is mandatory military service to your home country for a specific amount of time. Generally ages and involves everyone.

3. Historical Facts about the Draft
U.S. Civil War (1862) – white males 17 – 50 years of age
21% of the force used in this war was conscripted
Enrollment Act of Conscription - March 3,1863
Allowed a "commutation fee" - allowed wealthier and more influential citizens to buy their way out of service
Allowed for men ages 20 – 45 to be drafted
Commutation was later removed and new law allowed religious pacifists alternative ways to serve (1864)
New York Draft Riots - July 11,1863
Irish immigrants and African Americans competed for jobs
Lincoln called for a Draft, and within hours, Irish immigrants began a riot in New York
$1.5 million in damage and ~20 – 100 were killed
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4. Historical Facts about the Draft, con’t.
Selective Service Act of 1917
Draft during World War I
Drafted men ages
Did not allow for any type of commutation or substitution
Allowed conscientious objectors to have alternative duties
Allowed for deferment for workers of industry and agriculture
Selective Training and Service Act of 1940
Draft during World War II
Established the Selective Service as a branch of the government
First time the US had used a draft during peacetime
Draftees only had to serve one year of duty in the Western Hemisphere and U.S. territories
After Pearl Harbor, restrictions were removed and men ages 18 – 38 (extended to age 45) were drafted
From 1947 – 1948 the Draft was not used

5. Historical Facts about the Draft, con’t.
Draft was used consistently from during times of both war and peace
Active draft ended on July 1,1973
16,307,243 men were drafted by the selective service from the beginning of WWI in 1917 through the end of the Vietnam conflict
2,810,296 men were drafted for WWI
10,110,104 men were drafted for WWII
1,529,539 men were drafted for the Korean War
1,857,304 men were drafted for the Vietnam Conflict

6. Vietnam
As the war progressed many “career” soldiers either rotated out, retired, or were killed
Replaced with draftees whose leadership skills were questionable
Military officials blamed the draft policy for the slim talent pool
Many argue that if “the Harvard's” (educated middle class) had joined the fight then the military would have better leaders
There were instances where draftees killed their officers

7. My Lai Massacre
William Calley, an unemployed college dropout, graduated from Officer’s Candidate School and become a Lt.
He commanded troops in Vietnam and on March 16, 1968 he ordered the murder of 300 apparently unarmed civilians including women, children, and elderly
The draft makes it hard to keep people with low intelligence and emotional condition from filling Officer roles

8. Changes Since Vietnam
Men who were full time students used to be able to defer service until finished with school, now they could only defer until the end of their current semester or year in high school
Local draft boards are required to have an accurate representation of the racial and ethnic makeup of their particular areas
Draft boards no longer use the “quota system,” which made it difficult to ensure fairness within the system
A lottery system is in place that would ensure that men would only spend the year in which they turn 20 in first priority for the draft
If a man wanted to appeal his service in the military he is now guaranteed the right to speak to someone in person

9. Current Reinstatement Legislation
S.89 and H.R. 163 introduced in 2003
Liberal Sponsorship in Congress
Liberals feel the Draft will stop senseless wars
Opposing Liberals feel that since Bush was re-elected on November 2nd, the Draft will be reinstated for more wars, although he states he will not
October 6, 2004 – H.R. 163 overturned by a 402 – 2 vote
H.R. 487 introduced in 2003
Eliminate possibility of any future Draft
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10. The Current Draft Law What the law says
Men between the ages of 18 and 25 are required to register for the selective service
Failure to register can incur $250,000 in fines and up to five years in prison

11. Are there ways to get out of it?
Postponement
Student status
Ministerial students
Deferment
Emergency/Health crisis on day to report - Reclassification
Reservists - Reclassification
Hardship
Conscientious objection
Exemption
Surviving sons/brothers
Ministers
Elected officials
Veterans (generally during peacetime)
People currently in the army are not under a hardship per say – it is a hardship because they are not paid enough, but they chose that lifestyle and being in the army is a job which they chose.

12. Who must register?
Most, but not all, male U.S. citizens and resident aliens living in the United States, ages are required to register with the Selective Service
US Government's Who Must Register Chart
State Compliance Statistics

13. Political Examples
George W. Bush – used political and financial influence to dodge the Vietnam Draft and enlist in the U.S. National Guard
John Kerry – chose to enlist in the Army
William Clinton – dodged the Draft and used political ties to enlist in an ROTC program
Source needed

14. Women and the Draft Current law does not consider women in the Draft
In 1981, Rostker v. Goldberg upheld that only men needed to register – Upheld that the Due Process Clause of the Constitution was followed
In 1994, the Department of Defense stated that since the Draft is used for Army ground troops and women cannot be on the front line the Draft remains justifiable
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15. Do we need a draft? Reservists Exhausting the existing forces
Stop-loss orders keeping people in
Exhausting the existing forces
Drop in reserve forces
O’Hanlon, M. (2004) The need to increase the size of the deployable army. Parameters: 34, 4-14.

16. Figure 1. Existing and Planned Active-Duty Force Levels (Thousands of personnel)
Service
Authorized Strength, 9/03
Actual Strength, 9/03
Mobilized Reservists, 9/03
Request, 05
Army
480.0
499.3
127.5
482.4
Marines
175.0
177.8
11.1
Navy
375.7
382.2
3.5
368.1
Air Force
359.0
375.1
21.2
359.8
Source: Under Secretary of Defense David Chu, 11 February 2004.

17. Minorities and the Draft
How they are affected
Draft calls for proportionate ethnic representation from localities that it pulls from
“Don’t ask, don’t tell” would likely be scrapped in the event of a draft (Pentagon Policy)
Resident Aliens and people with dual citizenships are required to register
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18. Conscientious Objectors
A conscientious objector is anyone who is opposed to serving in the armed forces and/or bearing arms on the grounds of moral or religious principals.
If selected for military service the CO is required to appear before the local board to explain his beliefs
How he arrived at these beliefs
Their influence on how he lives his life

19. Conscientious Objectors
The CO must provide evidence to back up his claim with
Written documentation
Personal appearances
After the evidence is presented the Local Board can grant or deny CO status
The decision can be appealed to a Selective Service District Appeal Board
If again CO status is rejected, but not by a unanimous vote it can be appealed to the National Appeal Board
(uncompensated civilian volunteers)
Civilian volunteer boards

20. Qualifying Beliefs Acceptable Beliefs Not Acceptable Religious
Moral/Ethical
Not Acceptable
Politics
Expediency – interferes with school, job, or family plans
Self-Interest

21. Alternative Service
Those whose beliefs allow them to serve in the military, in a noncombatant way, will serve in the Armed Forces
Won’t be assigned training or duties that include using weapons
If their beliefs oppose any kind of military service then they are assigned to Alternative Service duties
The job must make a meaningful contribution to the maintenance of national health, safety, and interest of the citizens
Time spent in this service must equal the time spent by others serving in the Armed Forces
Typically 24 months

22. Medical Personnel Draft
There is a plan ready in case of a national crisis
The Health Care Personnel Delivery System (HCPDS)
A special draft that targets only Medical Personnel
Surgeons, doctors, dentists, nurses, paramedics, medical technicians, etc.

23. HCPDS Legislation Plan not designed for peacetime implementation
Only occur in the wake of a national crisis
Congress and the President would have to approve the plan and pass the legislation
Unless specifically stated, this draft would include women
Health care workers ages would have to register

24. Special Skills Draft
First steps being taken in creating a Special Skills draft
Computer experts
Foreign language specialists
The plan resembles the HCPDS draft in that once it is created then Congress and the President would have to pass legislation before the draft could happen

25. Arguments For the Draft
Some Liberals in Congress feel that the Draft would supply the armed forces with a broad mixture of soldiers which would lead to limits on future wars
The current armed forces situation favors accepting the poor and minorities -- a Draft would balance this disproportion
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26. Arguments Opposing the Draft
The U.S. Army already has a large enough volunteer base and keeps enough soldiers on active duty
The U.S. military is the most powerful military– large scale conflicts are a thing of the past
Volunteers are more motivated leading to a better, more unified Army
The current Army’s racial makeup is very close to the current U.S. citizen makeup
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27. What We Feel
Our opinion on the question of “Should the Draft be reinstated?” is …
We are not in favor of reinstating the draft
We feel that the volunteer army is sufficient enough for our country’s needs
We feel that the volunteer army is more united and motivated because they choose to be there and therefore it is more effective

28. References http://usconservatives.about.com/od/defensewar/i/draft.htm