Rangel to reintroduce draft bill

Rangel to reintroduce draft bill

It's not the bill that's shocking it's the source:

"Rep. Charles Rangel (D-NY) intends to reintroduce legislation calling for resumption of the draft during the current Congressional term, according to a memo circulated by Bill Galvin of the Center on Conscience and War.

Rangel, it will be recalled, was the author of the notorious HR 163, the 'universal' conscription bill that became a political football during the 2004 Presidential campaign. When charges that Bush would reinstate the draft emerged as a red-hot election issue last October, HR 163 became a liability for the Kerry campaign -- whereupon Rangel's bill was rushed to the floor and summarily voted down by a huge majority. For tactical reasons even the bill's sponsors, including Rangel, voted against it.

Rangel continues to argue that conscription would force privileged Americans to share the burden of military service now disproportionately carried by the poor and minorities. He also asserts that future wars would be made less likely by reintroduction of the draft."

Charlie Rangel has been making this argument for years and I still can't figure out if he really means it or if it's a very tricky, high-risk bluff. In this political climate, it's too dangerous a card to play...

Politics