Charlie Rangel Renews Call For Military Draft On Pearl Harbor Day 2011

Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) on Wednesday renewed his call for a military draft, speaking on the House floor on the anniversary of Pearl Harbor.

"If America is going to take this position, all Americans should be prepared to make the sacrifices as the gentleman before me has," said Rangel after Rep. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.) spoke touting the success of U.S. troops in Afghanistan, according to The Hill. "It's abundantly clear that everybody does not assume the same sacrifices, whether we're talking about taxes or loss of life."

"I submit that we have to have a draft," he continued.

Rangel has submitted legislation to reinstate the military draft several times since January 2003 during the run-up to the invasion of Iraq. In 2004, the House of Representatives voted down his measure by a 2-402 vote. He has said before introducing the bill that he indeed does not expect it to pass.

Rangel has said he favors a draft because he believes that it would lead to more responsible military decisions. "The moral hazard in planning for war is too great -- if we want responsible leadership, we must share the sacrifice," he said in 2011 in The Huffington Post.

Rangel served in the Korean War and earned a Purple Heart and a Bronze Star for his service. After he was wounded in Korea in the battle that earned him his decorations, he said that he has "never, never had a bad day."

Comments

[TankFAC]

11:49 PM on 12/07/2011

Please don't saddle us with draftees! Our job is hard enough already... we don't need to roll back the clock to the leadership challenges of the non-volunteer military. We are all volunteers now, we are professionals. We don't get to decide when, where or how we are deployed. If you want to change the policies of our Government, then PLEASE find another way within the Constitution... just PLEASE don't force draftees into our ranks. Remember, at the end of the day, our job is STILL to defend our great nation... please don't make it any harder than it is already!!

[ogcoll]

06:47 PM on 12/07/2011

I would be for the reinstatement of the draft, however it must be implemented as a 2-year "service of the country" draft and offer choices beyond the military options. Offering young people the choice of serving in a conservation corp, where scientific education and environmental monitoring (of perhaps rivers, the Gulf and other polluted and threatened natural areas) and a health services corp where those intent on persuing doctor and nursing careers could serve under-serviced areas (native american reservations, poorer rural areas and inner-city areas). All of those choosing these non-military options would still earn G.I. Bill type benefits that could be used to pay for their post-service education. I'd also offer up the option for nurses and doctors to re-enlist in this field to further offset the cost of education, thus allowing them to become doctors and nurses, but serve their country and not leave school with an enormous debt load to begin with.

A draft with non-military options would allow the conscientious to serve their nation fully, while gaining life skills. The non-military options would also help to insure that the armed services are getting motivated signees who want to join those branches of service and not the percentage of young Americans who would be weary and upset, thus uninspired, to perform at a high level for the military.

My form of the draft concept would benefit the nation, provide an educated gateway into the working world for young people.

[GeorgeSM]

05:40 PM on 12/07/2011

The idea of a draft is just posturing. We don't need that many soldiers any more. What would we do with the draftees? Don't forget that vwomen would be included!!

[medical cannabis patient]

05:17 PM on 12/07/2011

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2sBmUszhP_Q&feature=related

[Hank Xavier]

04:32 PM on 12/07/2011

Fantastic, I will say again what I said the LAST time a draft was discussed behind the beltway... GO FOR IT!!! If you want to see an anti-war movement rapidly coalesce in a real opposition movement, institute the draft. You will see these wars come to an end almost immediately, and it will continue to snowball into a massive restriction of militarism in this country. So by all means... bring back the draft and we will burn this motha down!!.

[ekwati]

04:01 PM on 12/07/2011

One can only wish the Press would indeed give this attention, even if ultimately, it certainly wouldn't carry... if only to see all those "Support our Troops", "I'm more patriotic than everyone else" warmongers whose only experience on the battlefield was gained from watching Saving Private Ryan and other dramatic Hollywood fare be forced to even consider the fact that wars are very nasty things in which people lose their lives.

[Otto Olivera]

04:00 PM on 12/07/2011

Charlie Rangel has become a real embarrassment to Democrats, and all Liberals. Reinstating the draft would be a disastrous move! From the time I was a child, in the sixties, I've firmly believed that true freedom means our government has no right to force its citizens into military conscription, especially when this country has repeatedly involved itself in unjustified and unnecessary wars, such as in Vietnam and in Iraq. Why the hell should anyone be forced to participate in warmongering? As millions chanted during the Vietnam war, "Hell no! We won't Go!"

[ekwati]

05:15 PM on 12/07/2011

Otto, I believe that you and others are missing his point entirely. He DOES NOT LIKE WAR. He has been there, and knows it's not a movie set.

He's simply trying to point out the hypocrisy of those warmongers who always equate patriotism with "fighting for your country", sending poor and middle class kids to war while their own sit comfortably in their big houses and gripe about the President not wearing a flag pin. I don't think he's seriously calling for the draft, but rather, intends to get people to actually start thinking about the fact that war involves REAL people losing their lives, even if the names of such people are not Cheney, Rove, Trump, etc., and thereby stop being so nonchalant about sending people out on those Iraq- and other type misadventures.

[Otto Olivera]

08:00 PM on 12/07/2011

I never said he likes war. If he's not seriously calling for the draft, why does he keep renewing his call for it? THAT'S hypocrisy! When there was a draft, mostly poor and middle-class people went to war. The rich got out of it, and those who went to college got deferments. My point stands that I believe the government has no right to force anyone into the military, and I want the Selective Service System to be abolished, completely. No one should have to register for the draft, and many people of my generation refused to do so. The draft wasn't written into the Constitution, and was never employed until 1861, when the Civil War began. The military should remain all-volunteer, and those who serve should be fairly compensated for their service.

[rbdennis58]

10:26 AM on 02/16/2013

It's quite simple. Obama would have his standing army.

[Otto Olivera]

11:43 AM on 02/16/2013

Hmmm... I'm not sure what possessed and compelled you to reply to my comment on a HuffPo story from over 14 months ago! I couldn't even remember it when I received an email notice of your reply. However, I can see, by the many comments you've posted on HuffPo, that you're obsessively determined to oppose President Obama, repeat false fabrications from the tea-bagging, far-right-wing-media-maggot-machine, respond with paranoid accusations, and spend tons of your time taking on those with whom you disagree. Well, you can keep on doing that to your heart's delight with other people, Sparky. As for me, it's a beautiful day outside, so I would much rather get out there and enjoy it, than waste my time debating you...

[solvseus]

03:59 PM on 12/07/2011

I think this is fine as long as we can easily get out of it by, say, being against the war. I was for Afghanistan, thought about joining, but then Iraq happened and suddenly I wasn't so thrilled with where we were headed. Lots of people saying they supported the war, and the troops, but I didn't see them enlisting. Would sure show up the hypocrites and chickenhawks for what they are.

[DR2]

03:49 PM on 12/07/2011

I agree with Charlie about a military draft. In addition to the law re-instating the draft, it should include an automatic 10% increase in the Veterans Administration's budget. Also, there would be a "War" surcharge progressive tax to pay for any military adventures that are for real or imagined threats.

This certainly would change attitudes about war and who does the sacrificing.

[Charles Mills]

03:45 PM on 12/07/2011

Most certainly. I would even go further. As a veteran I recognize not EVERYONE is cut out for military service so instead of "military draft" we need a simple SERVICE draft. You get drafted and then it can be either a period of military or public service but service one way or the other. And it would start immediately and retroactively for ALL government officials. You can SERVE until you have "served".

[Hank Xavier]

04:34 PM on 12/07/2011

Yay!! Slave conscription rocks!!

[Charles Mills]

11:59 AM on 12/08/2011

If EVERYONE does it, it's not exactly slavery. Look at our "leaders" and tell me each and every one of them could not do with a lesson on the value of serving someone other than yourself.

[just anotherone]

03:37 PM on 12/07/2011

Excuse me Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) (FEAR.MONGER) Reinstate the draft, whom are you assuming the U.S is at risk from an attack and invasion? Which countries' air force or navy?

[NightflyLester]

03:36 PM on 12/07/2011

Could have had more impact when rich kids might have been deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan, a little late now.

[ORAXX]

03:35 PM on 12/07/2011

As a Viet Nam veteran never, in my wildest dreams, did I think I could ever support a draft. That changed when G.W. Bush and Dick Cheney who, conspicuously, did not serve in Viet Nam and learned absolutely nothing from it, lied this country into two wars of choice. While I still oppose a peace time draft, I now feel that reestablishing the draft should be automatic any time the War Powers Act is invoked. A draft with very few exemptions for either men or women. It has become far to easy to send the children of the working class off to fight and die in wars of choice, started by rich men. Had such a measure been in place I do not believe either of our current nightmares would have happened and there would be three trillion fewer dollars on the national credit card.

[ekwati]

04:02 PM on 12/07/2011

Hear Hear!!!

[photobug90802]

04:25 PM on 12/07/2011

I agree completely, as another Viet Nam veteran, I too never thought I'd support a draft but these two elective credit card wars make it clear there needs to be some fallout for the clowns that so eagerly risk our young service people lives. I've always felt that if they are so brave with our kids’ lives they should be willing to risk their children’s lives too. While a peace time draft is problematic, training an army within the framework of a War Powers declaration could take far too long. It has a symbolic value that everyone is expected to sacrifice for the greater good, no exceptions. I’d guess their machismo would suffer a bit when they had to risk their own.

[ORAXX]

04:56 PM on 12/07/2011

My point exactly.

[Dylan Bobby Storey]

05:29 PM on 12/07/2011

First : Thanks both for your service.
Second: As someone who has never served in the military , and never really wished to , I agree. The american public as a whole would be outraged at the wars over the last 10 decades if there was a draft. Maybe we wouldn't be so worried about policing the world and be more worried about policing ourselves if this changed.

[Jerry Lammers]

03:22 PM on 12/07/2011

With many children and grandchildren, I'm not a friend of the military draft. Yet, I fully recognize that citizen soldiers would be a much bigger drag on military adventures than professional soldiers are.

[BILL1234]

03:16 PM on 12/07/2011

Yes. Rangel is correct on this issue. In brief, there has to be severe jail time for those who attempt to circumvent the draft. No deferments allowed. Wealthy not allowed easy entry into Reserves programs. Benefits no need for highly paid civilian contractors to do military jobs and the highly paid congress folks will temper their request for undeclared wars and/or police actions when their children can and will die on foreign soil.

[Solex]

01:46 AM on 12/23/2012

For this to work, there would have to be a COMPLETE no deferments draft, and ALL loopholes would be closed (learning disabled and intellectually challenged people would also have to be signed up, but given administrative jobs or service jobs, if they couldn't fight in combat, kind of like what's shown in the movie Forrest Gump.) Certain attention would have to be given to the wealthy to make sure that they don't just use legal trickery to make sure that their kids get away from military service, as what's been happening in South Korea has shown (people from the upper class Gungam district of Seoul have been known to do this, the singer Psy being almost one of them until he was shamed by his wife into doing it.) When a popular 'Mean Girl' get's her legs blown off or come back with a busted spinal cord, we'll really see some change.