Remember, before the 2004 elections, when Democrats insisted again and again that if Bush were re-elected the military draft would be brought back?  Well now one Democrat is trying to bring back the draft, and it appears as if he’s doing it for no other reason than to engender anti-military, anti-war sentiment:

Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) likely will introduce his controversial legislation to reinstate the draft again this year, but he will wait until after the economic stimulus package is passed

Asked if he plans to introduce the legislation again in 2009, Rangel last week said, “Probably … yes. I don’t want to do anything this early to distract from the issue of the economic stimulus.”

Rangel’s military draft bill did create a distraction for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) soon after Democrats won control of Congress after the 2006 election


In the wake of that historic victory, Pelosi said publicly that she did not support the draft and that the Democratic leadership would not back Rangel’s legislation. She also said Rangel’s legislation was not about reinstating the draft but was instead “a way to make a point” about social inequality

Reintroducing the military draft bill, which would attract media attention, will be trickier for Rangel in 2009 than it was a couple years ago because the Ways and Means Committee chairman is now under investigation by the House ethics committee.

We don’t need the draft.  We didn’t need it when Rangel initially brought up the idea in the midst of the worst parts of the Iraq war, and with the war in Iraq winding down we especially don’t need it now

So it seems as though Rangel only wants the draft as a way to create resentment among Americans for the military.  I really can’t think of another reason for this

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