Rudy is Chilled by Draft; He's a Dodger: Vets (deferment called "rare and questionable")

New York Post ^ | April 15, 2007 | CATHY BURKE

[Liz]

.... Rudy Giuliani carries a lot of baggage - but it's his draft-dodging past that may prove the biggest drag, prominent veterans tell New York magazine in tomorrow's issue. Speaking about terrorism and the Iraq war last week, Giuliani boasted, "It is something I understand better than anyone else running for president." But it was draft deferments that kept Giuliani, 62, out of Vietnam while he attended law school. He was granted a 2-A occupational deferment for his job as a law clerk in 1969 after his boss, the late Manhattan federal Judge Lloyd MacMahon, wrote a letter to the local draft board - a move criticized years later as rare and questionable. Law clerks were not on the 1968 list of critical jobs that qualified for occupational deferments. Giuliani "has made it clear that if he had been called up, he would have served," Giuliani spokeswoman Katie Levinson told New York magazine. He was opposed to the war in Vietnam on "strategic and tactical" grounds," she added, although she wouldn't offer specifics.

"If Giuliani is the nominee, we're going to hammer him with ads, and it's going to be easy because the issue is simple: He's a draft dodger," Jon Soltz, an Iraq vet who served as a captain and runs VoteVets.org, a left-leaning version of Swift Boat Veterans for Truth .......a sense that a candidate can handle the role of commander-in-chief remains important to most Americans.

[FrankR]

"Going into the National Guard was a common way for rich kids to get out of Vietnam"

In the Air Force (1964) there were quite a few Air National Guard troops going through basic training with the regulars. Frankly, had I known the ANG existed, I would have joined that instead of the regular AF.

Of all the ANG there, very few - if any - were "rich kids".

So people can't help but blame their lot in life on the "rich". Rich people get that way - and stay that way - for a reason...the blame-the-rich-first lot would be better served to try to learn from them; envy and hate will get you nowhere.

I never got a job from a poor man.

[Leisler]

Rumsfeld ...set the middle-east ....back by decades.

WTF?

Rumsfeld made the middle East GDP/person/day 1$?
Rumsfeld made half, or more illiterate?
Rumsfeld made not one (except Israel) democratic state?
Rumsfeld made the Middle East not make one world class manufacture good or service?
Rumsfeld made them not have one world class university?
...I could go on. How do you 'set back' a frozen, literally un-progressive dump?

[THEUPMAN]

And there goes Rooty down the drain......Roto-Rooty

Did you coin this ? ... or did you see it somewhere?

It’s great!

[Condor51]

The mistake is an easy one. IIRC Congressman Duncan Hunter does come from a Marine family but he choose the US Army.

And I don't think anyone here will or would 'diss' him. That guy is a real man, not some metrosexual phony. And if there's anyone running who knows about fighting an 'asymmetrical war' its him. He met that type of enemy up close and personal.

Viet Cong - Islamic Terrorist; very similar just a different version. (Terrorist V2.0)

[Lurker]

why wouldn't he have enlisted in a true military unit?

The Guard and Reserves are 'true military units', pal.

Bush actually did volunteer for Viet Nam but the airframe he was qualified to fly had been phased out of that theater and they didn't allow him to requalify in another aircraft.

I have friend who is in a Guard unit and has been deployed to the ME twice already. I dare you to tell him he isn't in a 'true military unit'.

L

[Miss Marple]

Sure, it's put out by the media. whether WE decide to give it a whole lot of weight is our decision.

You make a good point, though. The media is dragging up everything they can spin into attacks on Guiliani, because right now he is the frontrunner. Don't be deceived into thinking ANY candidate would be immune from this. The busy little elves of the MSM are all prepared to attack whoever gets the nomination. They probably have PILES of stuff to use on anyone who gets frontrunner status. They will chip, chip, chip away at each candidate as he takes first place. Fred Thompson is only immune because they WANT him in the race to knock down Romney and Guiliani, As soon as he enters, I give it one week until we start seeing stories about his "bad behavior on Holly wood sets" or "how mean he was to his first wife and children" or how he "dodged the draft during Viet Nam".

People need to ignore this stuff, because what is really going on is an attempt to have us lose confidence in ALL candidates, not just Guiliani.

I will be happy to remind folks of this when the next round of Mitt-bashing articles gets published. Right now they have kept his numbers down pretty well by scaring everyone over his Mormonism.

[McGavin999]

Nonsense! Even if you were only a year old, you could have joined an infantry troop!

LOL!

[FreedomPoster]

You’re full of crap, calling Bush a draft dodger. And call abuse on me, I don’t care.

Flying Century-series jets was a high-risk miliary occupation, higher risk than being a REMF in Vietnam.

[Petronski]

Bush and Cheney dodged the draft?

Is there no depth to which Rudiphilia will not sink?

[spit]

[JCEccles]

All the blabbering about draft dodging is stupid.

It was certainly considered important when Slick Willie Clinton was soiling the White House with his presence.

But Rudy gets a pass because he can beat the other Clinton? Does that really make sense?

[TalBlack]

“A valid point. But that means that Rudy is in the clear too doesn’t it?”

No, only if one subscribes to your self-serving, squishy, everchanging definitions of a ‘military unit’, a deferment, draft dodging etc. Using the traditional definitions you have no argument.

[Ultra Sonic 007]

Let’s wait and see how things are by the time the primaries roll around. Worrying about Hillary can wait until the general election (if she makes it that far).

[Petronski]

Now you’re quoting WaPo smears on President Bush?

Despicable.

[THEUPMAN]

if the president had been truly interested in serving his country why wouldn’t he have enlisted in a true military unit?

I think you just shot your self in the foot .

I can’t believe this comment is on FR.

[Petronski]

? uuuuh... I'm sure Texas was under great danger from the North Vietnamese. Anyway.

TROLL ALERT

[ketsu]

WTF? Rumsfeld made the middle East GDP/person/day 1$? Rumsfeld made half, or more illiterate? Rumsfeld made not one (except Israel) democratic state? Rumsfeld made the Middle East not make one world class manufacture good or service? Rumsfeld made them not have one world class university? ...I could go on. How do you 'set back' a frozen, literally un-progressive dump?

Your politics are muddling your worldview. The whole point of the Iraq venture was to show that the US was capable of taking down any regime in the region and to put the ME on notice that a new sheriff was in town.

The idea was, once pacified, Iraq would serve as a base of operations for the US to project hard power over the area and bring it to heel. This would also put China and the EU on notice that the US could cut off their oil spigot whenever and over whatever it wanted. Basically it was supposed to cement the US as the world's hegemonic power(note that I am not against this in any way shape or form).

Because Rumsfeld was overly optimistic regarding the ability to pacify Iraq he actually achieved the opposite. That's why China, Russia, NK and Iran all suddenly became more assertive after the war. The general opinion of the US now(a dangerous one) among its enemies is that the US is a paper tiger. Goad the US into conflict, then bog it down with an insurgency, and then it will implode on itself.

Until the US has a sufficiently large armed forces and economic independence(i.e. not selling the farm to china) the US will continue to flounder and weaken.

[airborne]

People need to ignore this stuff, because what is really going on is an attempt to have us lose confidence in ALL candidates, not just Guiliani.

Take it for what it is, yes.

But ignore it? Not likely.

And as for Rudy, I have little confidence already.

My position on his lack of military service is well documented.

In a time of war, I want a man who has served. Simple? Naive? Perhaps.

But that's what I want.

[Ultra Sonic 007]

Duncan Hunter served not only in the 173rd Airborne, but also in the 75th Army Rangers.

His father was a Marine who srved in World War II.

His son is a Marine who has served in Iraq twice (fought in Fallujah as well) and has recently been recalled to active duty for a third tour.

[gate2wire]

“I have friend who is in a Guard unit and has been deployed to the ME twice already. I dare you to tell him he isn’t in a ‘true military unit’.”

Exactly. Was talking to a Guardsman who was permanently disabled, his Humvee driver killed, by an IED.
Guess he wasn’t in a ‘true military unit’ either. Spit.

[JCEccles]

whether WE decide to give it a whole lot of weight is our decision.

Clinton? Crushing weight. Rudy? Featherweight. Gee, that was easy.

An unprincipled approach sure simplifies things, doesn't it?