Senate Democrats propose requiring women to register for military draft
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Senate Democrats are proposing a sweeping rewrite of the military draft laws aimed at requiring women to register for the Selective Service System, according to a draft authored by Senate Armed Services Chair Jack Reed and obtained by POLITICO.
The changes to Selective Service could be attached to the National Defense Authorization Act, a defense policy bill that’s one of the few pieces of legislation considered a “must-pass” by Congress. The move would reignite a contentious debate over whether women should be required to register for the draft, a move the House and Senate have each considered in recent years, though the change has never become law.
The language proposed by Reed (D-R.I.) would expand registration for the service to “All Americans,” striking explicit references to males. It’s expected to be considered during committee markup this week; floor action on the bill would wait until later this year. A spokesperson for Reed declined to comment.
Calls to expand the draft to include women have grown in recent years, particularly after the Pentagon opened all combat roles to women in 2015. A congressionally-mandated commission that reviewed the draft also backed the change last year.
Multiple lawsuits have taken aim at the current draft law, alleging it's unconstitutional. The Supreme Court in June declined to hear a case brought by the National Coalition for Men challenging the male-only draft.
Whether to include women in the draft became the subject of a marquee defense battle on Capitol Hill in 2016. The Senate voted to make the change as part of its annual defense policy bill with the backing of then-Senate Armed Services Chair John McCain (R-Ariz.), despite opposition mostly raised by conservative Republicans.
Making women eligible for the draft won bipartisan support from the Armed Services Committee at the time. Half the panel's GOP members sided with Democrats against a conservative effort to strip the language, including five who still serve in the Senate — Deb Fischer of Nebraska, Joni Ernst of Iowa, Thom Tillis of North Carolina, Dan Sullivan of Alaska and Lindsey Graham of South Carolina.
The House Armed Services Committee adopted a similar provision, which was later stripped from the bill.
Rather than go forward with the major change, lawmakers compromised by creating an independent commission to study the draft as part of a broader review of how to boost military and public service. In the meantime, the panel’s yearslong study effectively kept further congressional action on women in the draft at bay.
The 11-member panel's final report, issued in March 2020, backed requiring women to register for the draft, among other recommendations.
"This is a necessary and fair step, making it possible to draw on the talent of a unified Nation in a time of national emergency," the panel wrote in its report.
Reed, who has backed making women eligible for the military draft, said during a March hearing on the panel's findings that he hoped the changes would "in large part" be included in the upcoming defense bill.
The draft language is just one of several contentious issues expected to be considered by the Senate Armed Services Committee. In addition, senators are expected to debate a bid by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) to reform the treatment of military sexual assault and extremism in the military.
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Calls to expand the draft to include women have grown in recent years, particularly after the Pentagon opened all combat roles to women in 2015. A congressionally-mandated commission that reviewed the draft also backed the change last year.
Gonna be interesting.
Sounds fair to me.
Equality is what its all about, right?
Good! This is long overdue.
It's not for the defense of the United States. It's for ideology.
Tell that to the Israel IDF.
Better yet tell that to any of the 309 German families who lost their husbands, brothers or sons to Lyudmila Pavlichenko's
Mosin–Nagant model 1891 bolt-action sniper rifle during WWII.
Defense should include everyone.
Believe there was a bit of a war going on then and the two armies were enemies.
That does count, eh? 'Specially since men and women of those countries were conscripted through no choice - such as our "voluntary" draft. Or, we could do as the Swiss do - all men put in two years whether they want to or not and the women get to "volunteer".
What was the point of the draft?
It was for war.
Our men were given no choice either. All whites basically.
Red, black and yellow had to fight their way into the Armed Services of the USA
and serve in "special units" generally.
Nothing wrong with making everyone fill out the same paperwork.
I still have my draft card. You?
If 2 years of service, not necessarily in the military, were required,
imagine what we could accomplish.
Peace Corps at home and abroad. Teacher assistants, Forestry apprentices
Child Care, Elder Care
The possibilites are endless.
Imagine a country of 20 and 21 year olds looking for their first jobs
after 2 years in military or law enforcement back up, junior EMTs, etc..
Just the difference in maturity would change our nation.
All inclusive?
I rest my case!
Pretend like I have no clue what you're talking about and explain your case. I don't see why this is a bad idea. What am I missing?
I burned mine in the early 70's. I wasn't going to SE asia to cover a retreat, especially when there was such a target rich environment of fascists available locally.
"Last week, the Marine Corps announced that starting this October, it will allow company-grade female Marine officers to attend the infantry officer course or IOC. It’s about time. The women, if they pass, will still not be allowed to serve in the infantry, but the hope is to get more experienced officers to take the course, because to date only 20 entry-level officers have tried the course and all have failed, while 86 enlisted female Marines have passed their version of the infantry course. The major hurdle for the recruits seems to be the Combat Endurance Test given at the beginning of the course, which wipes out a significant amount of officers on the first day, including men. Only one woman has passed this test, only to fail out later on, due to injury."
Women are not men.
You don't have a case, what you have is a bias opinion.
Look to yourself.
Agreed.
That doesn't mean we wouldn't need them. It also doesn't mean they would be Marines, which is the smallest branch anyway.
The number of roles women can and do fulfill in the US Military is legion. You need everything from supply truck drivers to forklift operators to flight operations specialists to logistics control managers to helicopter pilots. Just because a woman can't do 20 pullups doesn't mean she isn't able to serve.
Absolutely! There were lots of women in the Air Force when I was in and many had leadership roles. I had a female Medical Group commander. She was an RN. That was the first time I ever had a med group commander who was female and not an MD. She earned it and did quite well leading her troops.
Women are commanding squadrons, groups, and now wings. The air force base my spouse works it just got its very first wing commander.
Some of the most storied combat units in the US Army have women in their ranks, in infantry, armor, and artillery (combat arms)
The 82nd Airborne (All Americans) the 101st Airborne (Screaming Eagles) and the 173rd Airborne (Sky Soldiers).
The article is 7 years old. The world and people change, well, most do.
Here is the latest on the Marines.
53 Women Officially Become Marines at Formerly All-Male Boot Camp
thank christ!
That was one hell of an observation on Vic's part...LMAO
He got one thing right today
Col. Stahl???
The base I last served at is now closed due to BRAC
WAVEs, WAACs and WASPs
Bullshit.
Gee, Vic...I'm certain the Air Force gave me my position because I had the knowledge and the skills to do the job. Not because of any political ideology.
I wasn't there, I can't say.
So then stop talking like you know fuck all about the military. You never served. Your comments are verging on the misogynistic...again
I would serve under you any day. Captain my captain.
Of course having to have me serve under someone is a different proposition....
LOL!
Of course, you weren't you actually had to be in the military.
The time has long since passed for either/or partisan thinking Vic; it's for both. Instead follow Goethe's "discover a second face hidden behind the one you see" in yourself first, and then in others. Kierkegaard's Either/Or will explain it to you if Hemmingway does not.
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I had to register at 18. I think everyone should register and at the same time be given voter registration.
Winner, winner, chicken dinner !!!!
Agree!
I could see conservative heads exploding with the proposition.
I can see their mouths sputtering..."butt...butt...butt..."