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ITHACA--Congressional leaders may be downplaying Charles Rangel's call to reinstate the draft but at least one newspaper in the Gannett chain thinks the Congressman has a point.An editorial in the November 24 Ithaca Journal picks on Rangel's arguments and asks the following:Would our leaders have made the same decisions based on the information they had to first invade and then stay in Iraq if it was their children on the ground fighting in the trenches? A draft would force all of us to consider the shared sacrifice required to wage war. That is a perspective that would weigh heavily on...

Although his proposal will not garner the support of this president or a majority of the members of Congress, Democrat Charles Rangel makes a superb point through his continuing push to reinstate the draft. Rangel argues persuasively that if there had been a draft in place in 2003, the administration would not have given any consideration to an occupation of Iraq based upon the flimsy evidence that was used to get us into this war, fearing that the children of prominent political figures might be required to go to war. The president and those in Congress who have consistently supported...

It didn’t take long, did it? The Democratic Congressional majority is unflinchingly leading us into that promised new direction, bowling us over with excitingly innovative ideas even before officially taking over. An example of the daring, novel approaches we can expect came this weekend from New York’s Charles Rangel, who’ll chair the Ways and Means Committee, arguably the most powerful panel in Congress. Mr. Rangel will wield a big gavel; when he talks, people – especially his colleagues – listen. The Congressman told CBS News’ Face the Nation viewers he will initiate legislation reintroducing the military draft. The irony is...

Libertarians Blast Democrat's Call for Renewed Draft LIBERTARIAN PARTY OF NEW YORK (LPNY) www.ny.lp.org nylibertarian@hotmail.com; John Clifton www.electclifton.org 516-767-4688 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE LIBERTARIANS BLAST DEMOCRAT'S CALL FOR RENEWED DRAFT Albany, NY 11/22/06 New York's Libertarian Party has blasted incoming Democratic Congressional leader Charles Rangel (D-Harlem) announced that he will introduce legislation to restore the military draft. Former State Chair John Clifton of Queens is a former Navy nuclear submarine missile technician. Like Rangel he is black but opposes the draft and resents the Congressman's appeal to race on this issue for all Americans. "This is nothing less than a call...

The question of whether we need a universal military draft will be important as long as this country is placing thousands of young men and women in harm's way in Iraq. As long as Americans are being shipped off to war, then everyone should be vulnerable, not just those who, because of economic circumstances, are attracted by lucrative enlistment bonuses and educational incentives. Even before the first bomb was dropped, before the first American casualty, I have opposed the war in Iraq. I continue to believe that decision-makers would never have supported the invasion if more of them had family...

Rep. Charlie Rangel's trial balloon, put aloft to see whether there's any sentiment in the new Democratic Congress to reinstate the military draft, was aimed at Baghdad but the balloon, fully deflated, landed somewhere between Capitol Hill and Bowie. Mr. Rangel insists he's serious, but Nancy Pelosi, the speaker to be, says no, he's not. All good ol' Charlie is trying to do, she says, is to make a point that blacks and Hispanics are carrying a disproportionate burden in the war in Afghanistan and Iraq, and the war effort should be "a shared sacrifice" and his legislation is "his...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Leading Democrats who soon will control the legislative agenda in the U.S. Congress rejected on Monday a colleague's call for reinstatement of the U.S. military draft. "I don't think we need it," Sen. Carl Levin of Michigan told reporters. He is set to chair the Senate Armed Services Committee when Democrats take over both houses of Congress from Republicans in January.

Do you agree with Rep. Charles Rangel that bringing back the draft would deter politicians from launching wars? Yes No

(2006-11-20) — Rep. Charles Rangel, D-NY, yesterday unveiled the Democrat plan for boosting the minimum wage, providing free healthcare to millions more Americans, increasing college attendance, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and preventing future U.S. wars of aggression. “Our plan is so simple and elegant that it can be stated in one word — draft,” said Rep. Rangel. “By implementing a military draft, we’ll provide a living wage and free healthcare to our new involuntary soldiers and their families, plus we’ll give them college money after their term of service.” The New York Democrat, who has proposed a draft several times...

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - An influential Democratic lawmaker on Sunday called for reinstatement of the draft as a way to boost U.S. troop levels and draw a broader section of the population into the military or public service.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - An influential Democratic lawmaker on Sunday called for reinstatement of the draft as a way to boost U.S. troop levels and draw a broader section of the population into the military or public service. U.S. Rep. Charles Rangel, the incoming chairman of the House of Representatives' tax-writing committee, said he would introduce legislation to reinstate the draft as soon as the new, Democratic-controlled Congress convenes in January. Asked on CBS' "Face the Nation" if he was still serious about the proposal for a universal draft he raised a couple of years ago, he said, "You bet your...

A senior House Democrat said Sunday he will introduce legislation to reinstate the military draft, asserting that current troop levels are insufficient to sustain possible challenges against Iran, North Korea and Iraq. "There's no question in my mind that this president and this administration would never have invaded Iraq, especially on the flimsy evidence that was presented to the Congress, if indeed we had a draft and members of Congress and the administration thought that their kids from their communities would be placed in harm's way," said Rep. Charles Rangel (news, bio, voting record), D-N.Y. Rangel, a veteran of the...

The morning of Friday, April 18, 1997, Daniel Wells of McKinney took the stand in his own defense. Charged with aggravated sexual assault for fondling his girlfriend's 8-year-old daughter, Wells explained it was all a misunderstanding. Wells was a decorated Vietnam war hero, with two Purple Hearts and two Bronze Medals for valor. On cross-examination, testimony revealed that even the mother initially hadn't believed the little girl. It was the war hero's word against the child's. In desperation the prosecutor's office tracked down B.G. Burkett, a silver-haired Dallas financial adviser who has obtained a national reputation as a military researcher...

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, initial filings for government unemployment benefits dropped by 20,000 during October. The decline in unemployment was described as “the last gasp of failed Republican economic policy” by incoming Senate Majority Leader, Harry Reid (D-Nev.). “We’re going to get this turned around now that we’re in charge,” Reid said. “It is unconscionable that Bush’s tax-cutting policies have driven so many into the employed labor force. The loss of leisure time has been immense and unnecessary in a nation as wealthy as ours.” In related news, Rep. Charles Rangel (D-N.Y.) called for the reinstatement of...

On January 8th of 2003, Congressman Charles Rangel [D-NY] began an extensive campaign to bring back the military draft. He repeatedly submitted legislative bills to begin a military draft and compel all American men and women up to the age of forty-two to serve two years of military service. Under the Republican-controlled Congress, such bills went down to defeat.One of the few notable supporters of the draft was Congressman John Murtha [D-PA]. Congressman Murtha reportedly is preparing to campaign to take over the highly influential position of House Majority Leader. Congressman Rangel is set to take over the House Ways...

Just a thought I had, but can you imagine the anti-war leftists if they succeed in giving Democrats control of the House and Democrat Charles Rangle, who would become head of the Ways and Means Committee, got his desire to reinstate the military draft? They can whine in their BDU's while I'll be smiling in my "Don't Blame Me, I Voted Republican" T-Shirt."

A column of mine on this same topic, the military draft, was published in the St. Petersburg Times on Sept. 29, 1999. The headline was "Military service should be mandatory." Again, we should bring back the draft. I was inspired to return to this subject because of the furor John Kerry created the other day when, while addressing students in Los Angeles, he lamely joked about George W. Bush's incuriosity and intellectual deficits, saying, "Education, if you make the most of it, you study hard, you do your homework and you make an effort to be smart, you can do...

Charlie Rangel called our military poor and full of minorities.

Kerry's remarks indicate that Democrats plan to reinstate the military draft if voted into power next week. Kerry, the Democrat candidate for President in the 2004 general election, remarked that those who study hard will avoid military service in Iraq. This Kerry blunder exposes Democrat party plans to reinstate the military draft along with plans to grant college deferments to the rich and privileged. Those most affected by this Democrat policy will be the poor, minorities and citizen children of immigrants.

The United States never mobilized to fight the war against terror. That means our full industrial might, our full economic might, and the focus of many of our government departments is not thoroughly embracing the war effort. Additionally, some other issues like human rights and democracy in Southeast Asia may be suffering. Since September 11, 2001, many great changes have helped transform America to fight the war on terror, as we have noted, as recently as on the anniversary of 9/11 in The Washington Times: “Since September 11, the damaged section of the Pentagon has been rebuilt, a plan is...