Dems try to pass draft bill

And they say the GOP is going to try to institute a draft...for shame...

House Opposes Military Draft Bill
Tuesday, October 05, 2004

WASHINGTON — The House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly Tuesday against a bill to reinstate the military draft, a tool that had been used by Democrats to point out the inherent inequality of volunteer service.

The House voted 2-402 against suspending the debate and moving toward passage, meaning that the bill could be debated in perpetuity. The procedural motion is an action that prompts the sponsor of the legislation to pull it out of consideration.

Rep. Charles B. Rangel (search), D-N.Y., introduced the legislation in January 2003 in an effort to highlight what he saw as an ill-prepared and ill-advised Iraq policy. Sen. Ernest "Fritz" Hollings (search), D-S.C., pushed a similar bill in the Senate.

The legislation in both chambers declares that it is the obligation of every U.S. citizen and resident between the ages of 18 and 26 to perform a two-year period of national service.

GOP leaders said that Rangel and Hollings introduced the bills with the sole intent of scaring people in an election season.

This campaign is a baseless and malevolent concoction of the Democrat Party, and everyone in this chamber knows it. It has one purpose -- to spread fear. To spread fear among an unsuspecting public, to undermine the war on terror, to undermine our troops, to undermine our cause, and most of all, to undermine our commander-in-chief in an election year," said House Majority Leader Tom DeLay, R-Texas.

The bills have lain dormant for nearly two years, but e-mails widely circulated on college campuses, which claimed that the Bush administration was trying to secretly revive the draft, prompted House Republicans to quash the issue by calling for a vote.

"Clearly these bills are filed not by Republicans, not on behalf of the administration, but by those who are being partisan Democrats about this and trying to scare people," said Sen. John Cornyn (search), R-Texas.

Rangel, however, did not act like he was kidding. He has been a vocal proponent of the draft, claiming that only mandatory national service would alleviate what he says are disproportionate numbers of working-class people and members of minority groups serving in the military.

"I believe in the draft and ... shared sacrifice," Rangel said.

Rangel, himself, voted against the bill, though he could argue that the procedural rules that guided the vote, which would have required a two-thirds approval, forced him to oppose it. However, Rangel has acknowledged that the legislation was also devised to arouse more controversy and debate about the war in Iraq, which was only in the planning stages when the bill was introduced.

"It's a wake-up call as to the sincerity that people have to supporting the war," Rangel said. "If they believe in the war, they should be able to say that everyone's family should be prepared to make the sacrifice."

Rangel suggested that the threat of a draft could move public support away from the administration's Iraq policy.

"If the American people don't support it, they're not going to support the draft," Rangel said. "And the administration is going to have to take a different look as to how you get rid of evil people."

Earlier Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist said regardless of the political game played in the House, he had no intention of bringing the debate to the Senate floor.

"I can tell you it's not going to be addressed in the United States Senate. It is a non-issue and is not going to be addressed," Frist said.

The vote, which shows Republicans en bloc voting against any effort to bring back the draft, could help shut down Internet rumors that the Bush administration had a secret plan to reinstate the draft. The White House had said Bush would veto the measure if it passed.

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Dems try to pass draft bill

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The bills have lain dormant for nearly two years, but e-mails widely circulated on college campuses, which claimed that the Bush administration was trying to secretly revive the draft, prompted House Republicans to quash the issue by calling for a vote.

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Could someone please turn this shit off?
"The message you have entered is too short. Please lengthen your message to at least 7 characters."

Who started the bills?

It was the Republicans who by calling for a vote "tried to pass the bill" is the point I was making

I see; though in objectively they stopped the bill...

The title should be "democrats introduce draft bill"

Ok
(can someone get rid of this 7 character rule?)

Rangel has been a man that wanted the draft reinstated for a long time...he is one person with one seconder...hardly the "dems". Look at the result...do you listen to yourself sometimes?
But let's consider somethings.

If we are to wage this "war on terror" we need more troops. Already Roughly half ( not accurate but around that mark) of the troops in Iraq are our home guard. We are recalling ex vets still on retention contract. We are falling short of voluntary recruitment. So how do we get more troops? we either need to get outside help from the international community or we will find ourselves with a draft.
But there is one thing that needs to be done in the USA...and that's a gut check.
There is a huge amount of support for this war and a lot has to do with the fact that the majority of supporters don't have a thing to lose. Their sons/daughters/wives or husbands are not in the line of fire. If we had the draft don't you think more people would be asking the question "is it right" with conviction?
Here we have a go it alone president and VP that say bring it on...i'm ready for a fight...but the're not...they are ready for others to fight...when it came time for them to fight personally they chose not to.
I've never been one that asks "if you're so for this war why don't you join up?" but the fact is that it often seems that the ones shouting loudest in favor are the ones with the least to lose.

I have children, one of which will be draft age in the not too disatant future, i don't want the draft, especially for a war that i disagreed with from the start.
But i have to say completely out of character with my views..... PUT UP OR SHUT UP. Let's have a draft and let's close the loopholes where some get to "opt out" Treat everyone the same with one exception...call up the ones with their own guns first...the're ready for a fight.

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Originally Posted by vidcc

Rangel has been a man that wanted the draft reinstated for a long time...he is one person with one seconder...hardly the "dems". Look at the result...do you listen to yourself sometimes?
But let's consider somethings.

If we are to wage this "war on terror" we need more troops. Already Roughly half ( not accurate but around that mark) of the troops in Iraq are our home guard. We are recalling ex vets still on retention contract. We are falling short of voluntary recruitment. So how do we get more troops? we either need to get outside help from the international community or we will find ourselves with a draft.
But there is one thing that needs to be done in the USA...and that's a gut check.
There is a huge amount of support for this war and a lot has to do with the fact that the majority of supporters don't have a thing to lose. Their sons/daughters/wives or husbands are not in the line of fire. If we had the draft don't you think more people would be asking the question "is it right" with conviction?
Here we have a go it alone president and VP that say bring it on...i'm ready for a fight...but the're not...they are ready for others to fight...when it came time for them to fight personally they chose not to.
I've never been one that asks "if you're so for this war why don't you join up?" but the fact is that it often seems that the ones shouting loudest in favor are the ones with the least to lose.

I have children, one of which will be draft age in the not too disatant future, i don't want the draft, especially for a war that i disagreed with from the start.
But i have to say completely out of character with my views..... PUT UP OR SHUT UP. Let's have a draft and let's close the loopholes where some get to "opt out" Treat everyone the same with one exception...call up the ones with their own guns first...the're ready for a fight.

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Pure eloquence.

I like the title "Dems try to pass draft bill" to cover a whole 2 Democrats.

While I'm not in any form for the draft, it goes to show you that our President doesn't have a clue and acts tough but is simply stupid.

Let's have a needless war but let's cut taxes.

Let's spread our troops thin without a plan.

I think some like the President's supposed tough demeanor without looking at his intelligence.

http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/ar...TICLE_ID=38139

Republican senator: Bring back the draft

2 Democrats represent all Democrats? What about this guy?

The whole issue is electioneering horseshit.

Absent another World-War, you will not catch a Republican re-instituting the draft, and Rangel's and other Dem's excuse that we need to consider the idea in order to have the mechanism for a draft in place is likewise horseshit.

The volunteer army can be improved only by providing better training/opportunity for those who see fit to join, besides which, we neatly skirt any residual bitching along the lines of, "But I never thought we'd ever actually HAVE to fight!"

Wonder of wonders, the lesson of careful consideration is learned!

We've got what we need.

BTW-you all have Rumsfeld to thank for this.