"[T]he most fundamental objection to draft registration is moral...a draft or draft registration destroys the very values that our society is committed to defending."
Although Goldwater supported the war in Vietnam, he opposed the draft in favor of an all-volunteer military.
The Declaration of Independence:
"He [the King] has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures."
Daniel Webster, during the War of 1812:
"Where is it written in the Constitution, in what article or section is it contained, that you may take children from their parents, and parents from their children, and compel them to fight the battles of any war, in which the folly or the wickedness of Government may engage it?"
The draft, said candidate Reagan, "rests on the assumption that your kids belong to the state.... That assumption isn't a new one. The Nazis thought it was a great idea."
Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX):
"Conscription is not part of the American dream. It is not part of the American philosophy. It is not part of liberty. It is a totalitarian notion. Congress has the authority to raise an army, but it does not have the constitutional authority to enslave a certain group to bear the brunt of the fighting. A society that cherishes liberty will easily find volunteer defenders if it is attacked. A free society that cannot find those willing to defend itself without coercion cannot survive, and probably does not deserve to."
And yet it's hard to argue that the will of the people during WW II proved that a draft can be successful. As I've said during this thread, instituting a draft now is a "God forbid" scenario.