Texas Rejects Draft Slavery
by Texas Rep. Ron Paul
I oppose HR 163 (printed below) in the strongest possible terms. The draft, whether for military purposes or some form of "national service," violates the basic moral principles of individual liberty upon which this country was founded. Furthermore, the military neither wants nor needs a draft.
The Department of Defense, in response to calls to reinstate the draft, has confirmed that conscription serves no military need. Defense officials from both parties have repudiated it. Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld has stated, "The disadvantages of using compulsion to bring into the armed forces the men and women needed are notable," while President William Clinton's Secretary of the Army Louis Caldera, in a speech before the National Press Club, admitted that, "Today, with our smaller, post-Cold War armed forces, our stronger volunteer tradition and our need for longer terms of service to get a good return on the high, upfront training costs, it would be even harder to fashion a fair draft."
However, the most important reason to oppose HR 163 is that a draft violates the very principles of individual liberty upon which our nation was founded. Former President Ronald Reagan eloquently expressed the moral case against the draft in the publication Human Events in 1979: "[Conscription] rests on the assumption that your kids belong to the state. If we buy that assumption then it is for the state – not for parents, the community, the religious institutions or teachers – to decide who shall have what values and who shall do what work, when, where and how in our society. That assumption isn't a new one. The Nazis thought it was a great idea."
Some say the 18-year old draftee "owes it" to his (or her, since HR 163 makes women eligible for the draft) country. Hogwash! It just as easily could be argued that a 50-year-old chickenhawk, who promotes war and places innocent young people in danger, owes more to the country than the 18-year-old being denied his (or her) liberty.
All drafts are unfair. All 18- and 19-year-olds are never drafted. By its very nature a draft must be discriminatory. All drafts hit the most vulnerable young people, as the elites learn quickly how to avoid the risks of combat.
Economic hardship is great in all wars. War is never economically beneficial except for those in position to profit from war expenditures. The great tragedy of war is that it enables the careless disregard for civil liberties of our own people. Abuses of German and Japanese Americans in World War I and World War II are well known.
But the real sacrifice comes with conscription – forcing a small number of young vulnerable citizens to fight the wars that older men and women, who seek glory in military victory without themselves being exposed to danger, promote. The draft encourages wars with neither purpose nor moral justification, wars that too often are not even declared by the Congress.
Without conscription, unpopular wars are difficult to fight. Once the draft was undermined in the 1960s and early 1970s, the Vietnam War came to an end. But most importantly, liberty cannot be preserved by tyranny. A free society must always resort to volunteers. Tyrants think nothing of forcing men to fight and serve in wrongheaded wars. A true fight for survival and defense of America would elicit, I am sure, the assistance of every able-bodied man and woman. This is not the case with wars of mischief far away from home, which we have experienced often in the past century.
A government that is willing to enslave some of its people can never be trusted to protect the liberties of its own citizens. I hope all my colleagues join me in standing up for individual liberty by rejecting HR 163 and all attempts to bring back the draft.
10-5-04
Defeated in House 402-2
108th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 163
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.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
January 7, 2003
Mr. RANGEL (for himself, Mr. MCDERMOTT, Mr. CONYERS, Mr. LEWIS of Georgia,
Mr. STARK, and Mr. ABERCROMBIE) introduced the following bill; which was referred
to the Committee on Armed Services
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.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United
States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.
(a) SHORT TITLE- This Act may be cited as the `Universal National Service Act
of 2003'.
(b) TABLE OF CONTENTS- The table of contents for this Act is as follows:
Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. National service obligation.
Sec. 3. Two-year period of national service.
Sec. 4. Implementation by the President.
Sec. 6. Deferments and postponements.
Sec. 7. Induction exemptions.
Sec. 8. Conscientious objection.
Sec. 9. Discharge following national service.
Sec. 10. Registration of females under the Military Selective Service Act.
Sec. 11. Relation of Act to registration and induction authority of Military
Selective Service Act.
SEC. 2. NATIONAL SERVICE OBLIGATION.
(a) OBLIGATION FOR YOUNG PERSONS- It is the obligation of every citizen of the
United States, and every other person residing in the United States, who is
between the ages of 18 and 26 to perform a period of national service as prescribed
in this Act unless exempted under the provisions of this Act.
(b) FORM OF NATIONAL SERVICE- National service under this Act shall be performed
either--
(1) as a member of an active or reverse component of the uniformed services;
or
(2) in a civilian capacity that, as determined by the President, promotes
the national defense, including national or community service and homeland
security.
(c) INDUCTION REQUIREMENTS- The President shall provide for the induction of
persons covered by subsection (a) to perform national service under this Act.
(d) SELECTION FOR MILITARY SERVICE- Based upon the needs of the uniformed services,
the President shall--
(1) determine the number of persons covered by subsection (a) whose service
is to be performed as a member of an active or reverse component of the uniformed
services; and
(2) select the individuals among those persons who are to be inducted for
military service under this Act.
(e) CIVILIAN SERVICE- Persons covered by subsection (a) who are not selected
for military service under subsection (d) shall perform their national service
obligation under this Act in a civilian capacity pursuant to subsection (b)(2).
SEC. 3. TWO-YEAR PERIOD OF NATIONAL SERVICE.
(a) GENERAL RULE- Except as otherwise provided in this section, the period of
national service performed by a person under this Act shall be two years.
(b) GROUNDS FOR EXTENSION- At the discretion of the President, the period of
military service for a member of the uniformed services under this Act may be
extended--
(1) with the consent of the member, for the purpose of furnishing hospitalization,
medical, or surgical care for injury or illness incurred in line of duty;
or
(2) for the purpose of requiring the member to compensate for any time lost
to training for any cause.
(c) EARLY TERMINATION- The period of national service for a person under this
Act shall be terminated before the end of such period under the following circumstances:
(1) The voluntary enlistment and active service of the person in an active
or reverse component of the uniformed services for a period of at least two
years, in which case the period of basic military training and education actually
served by the person shall be counted toward the term of enlistment.
(2) The admission and service of the person as a cadet or midshipman at the
United States Military Academy, the United States Naval Academy, the United
States Air Force Academy, the Coast Guard Academy, or the United States Merchant
Marine Academy.
(3) The enrollment and service of the person in an officer candidate program,
if the person has signed an agreement to accept a Reserve commission in the
appropriate service with an obligation to serve
on active duty if such a commission is offered upon completion of the program.
(4) Such other grounds as the President may establish.
SEC. 4. IMPLEMENTATION BY THE PRESIDENT.
(a) IN GENERAL- The President shall prescribe such regulations as are necessary
to carry out this Act.
(b) MATTER TO BE COVERED BY REGULATIONS- Such regulations shall include specification
of the following:
(1) The types of civilian service that may be performed for a person's national
service obligation under this Act.
(2) Standards for satisfactory performance of civilian service and of penalties
for failure to perform civilian service satisfactorily.
(3) The manner in which persons shall be selected for induction under this
Act, including the manner in which those selected will be notified of such
selection.
(4) All other administrative matters in connection with the induction of persons
under this Act and the registration, examination, and classification of such
persons.
(5) A means to determine questions or claims with respect to inclusion for,
or exemption or deferment from induction under this Act, including questions
of conscientious objection.
(6) Standards for compensation and benefits for persons performing their national
service obligation under this Act through civilian service.
(7) Such other matters as the President determines necessary to carry out
this Act.
(c) USE OF PRIOR ACT- To the extent determined appropriate by the President,
the President may use for purposes of this Act the procedures provided in the
Military Selective Service Act (50 U.S.C. App. 451 et seq.), including procedures
for registration, selection, and induction.
SEC. 5. INDUCTION.
(a) IN GENERAL- Every person subject to induction for national service under
this Act, except those whose training is deferred or postponed in accordance
with this Act, shall be called and inducted by the President for such service
at the time and place specified by the President.
(b) AGE LIMITS- A person may be inducted under this Act only if the person has
attained the age of 18 and has not attained the age of 26.
(c) VOLUNTARY INDUCTION- A person subject to induction under this Act may volunteer
for induction at a time other than the time at which the person is otherwise
called for induction.
(d) EXAMINATION; CLASSIFICATION- Every person subject to induction under this
Act shall, before induction, be physically and mentally examined and shall be
classified as to fitness to perform national service. The President may apply
different classification standards for fitness for military service and fitness
for civilian service.
SEC. 6. DEFERMENTS AND POSTPONEMENTS.
(a) HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS- A person who is pursuing a standard course of study,
on a full-time basis, in a secondary school or similar institution of learning
shall be entitled to have induction under this Act postponed until the person--
(1) obtains a high school diploma;
(2) ceases to pursue satisfactorily such course of study; or
(3) attains the age of 20.
(b) HARDSHIP AND DISABILITY- Deferments from national service under this Act
may be made for--
(2) physical or mental disability.
(c) TRAINING CAPACITY- The President may postpone or suspend the induction of
persons for military service under this Act as necessary to limit the number
of persons receiving basic military training and education to the maximum number
that can be adequately trained.
(d) TERMINATION- No deferment or postponement of induction under this Act shall
continue after the cause of such deferment or postponement ceases.
SEC. 7. INDUCTION EXEMPTIONS.
(a) QUALIFICATIONS- No person may be inducted for military service under this
Act unless the person is acceptable to the Secretary concerned for training
and meets the same health and physical qualifications applicable under section
505 of title 10, United States Code, to persons seeking original enlistment
in a regular component of the Armed Forces.
(b) OTHER MILITARY SERVICE- No person shall be liable for induction under this
Act who--
(1) is serving, or has served honorably for at least six months, in any component
of the uniformed services on active duty; or
(2) is or becomes a cadet or midshipman at the United States Military Academy,
the United States Naval Academy, the United States Air Force Academy, the
Coast Guard Academy, the United States
Merchant Marine Academy, a midshipman of a Navy accredited State maritime
academy, a member of the Senior Reserve Officers' Training Corps, or the naval
aviation college program, so long as that person satisfactorily continues in
and completes two years training therein.
SEC. 8. CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTION.
(a) CLAIMS AS CONSCIENTIOUS OBJECTOR- Any person selected under this Act for
induction into the uniformed services who claims, because of religious training
and belief (as defined in section 6(j) of the Military Selective Service Act
(50 U.S.C. 456(j))), exemption from combatant training included as part of that
military service and whose claim is sustained under such procedures as the President
may prescribe, shall, when inducted, participate in military service that does
not include any combatant training component.
(b) TRANSFER TO CIVILIAN SERVICE- Any such person whose claim is sustained may,
at the discretion of the President, be transferred to a national service program
for performance of such person's national service obligation under this Act.
SEC. 9. DISCHARGE FOLLOWING NATIONAL SERVICE.
(a) DISCHARGE- Upon completion or termination of the obligation to perform national
service under this Act, a person shall be discharged from the uniformed services
or from civilian service, as the case may be, and shall not be subject to any
further service under this Act.
(b) COORDINATION WITH OTHER AUTHORITIES- Nothing in this section shall limit
or prohibit the call to active service in the uniformed services of any person
who is a member of a regular or reserve component of the uniformed services.
SEC. 10. REGISTRATION OF FEMALES UNDER THE MILITARY SELECTIVE SERVICE ACT.
(a) REGISTRATION REQUIRED- Section 3(a) of the Military Selective Service Act
(50 U.S.C. 453(a)) is amended--
(1) by striking `male' both places it appears;
(2) by inserting `or herself' after `himself'; and
(3) by striking `he' and inserting `the person'.
(b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT- Section 16(a) of the Military Selective Service Act
(50 U.S.C. App. 466(a)) is amended by striking `men' and inserting `persons'.
SEC. 11. RELATION OF ACT TO REGISTRATION AND INDUCTION AUTHORITY OF MILITARY
SELECTIVE SERVICE ACT.
(a) REGISTRATION- Section 4 of the Military Selective Service Act (50 U.S.C.
App. 454) is amended by inserting after subsection (g) the following new subsection:
`(h) This section does not apply with respect to the induction of persons into
the Armed Forces pursuant to the Universal National Service Act of 2003.'.
(b) INDUCTION- Section 17(c) of the Military Selective Service Act (50 U.S.C.
App. 467(c)) is amended by striking `now or hereafter' and all that follows
through the period at the end and inserting `inducted pursuant to the Universal
National Service Act of 2003.'.
SEC. 12. DEFINITIONS.
(1) The term `military service' means service performed as a member of an
active or reverse component of the uniformed services.
(2) The term `Secretary concerned' means the Secretary of Defense with respect
to the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps, the Secretary of Homeland
Security with respect to the Coast Guard, the Secretary of Commerce, with
respect to matters concerning the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration,
and the Secretary of Health and Human Services, with respect to matters concerning
the Public Health Service.
(3) The term `United States', when used in a geographical sense, means the
several States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands,
and Guam.
(4) The term `uniformed services' means the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine
Corps, Coast Guard, commissioned corps of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration, and commissioned corps of the Public Health Service.
END
