COUNTERING MILITARY RECRUITMENT
Articles: Leaving Military: Stop-Loss
Back-door' draft gets attention to help keep military numbers up
James Foley, Medill Reports
Oct 03, 2007
In this fourth year of the war in Iraq, the word "draft" has onceagain emerged as the Bush administration has pressed to maintain the
troop surge.
Although most informed sources on either side of the debate believe
there isn't the political will or strategic rationale for a draft,
many speak of a "back-door draft," extending military service for
some active and reserve troops beyond the end of their contract.
Stop-Loss
Under the law, the president as commander-in- chief has broad powers
in managing the armed forces. This right essentially allows the
military to retain the service members with their combat units for as
long as those units are deployed. That could mean a soldier who
signed up for a four-year hitch could have his or her duty extended
for the length of another tour in Iraq or Afghanistan.
It's called "stop-loss." John Boyce, in the Army office of Public
Affairs, said that stop-loss is a, "statutory tool that allows the
Army to sustain a force that has trained together to remain a
cohesive element throughout its deployment."
Stop-loss, said Boyce, "is used sparingly, affecting only about 1
percent of the total force, for limited periods of time. This
balances the need for unit effectiveness against the impact on
individual soldiers."
Army statistics released at the end of April show there are 5,185
active troops doing extended duty under stop-loss -- 1,432 in Reserve
and 2,103 in the Guard, making for a total of 8,720.
The highest reported level of stop-loss was May, 2005 when 14,288
total troops were called to extended duty. In all, more than 50,000
troops have been held in stop-loss since December 2004, according to Army data.
Marti Hiken, co-chair of the military law task force of the National
Lawyers Guild said, "I think the numbers are much higher, we've had
over 32,000 calls in the GI Hotline -- most from stop-loss issues."
Evan Knappenberger, a former intelligence analyst based out of Fort
Hood, who was deployed in Iraq for all of 2006, said that more than
half his old unit is currently serving under stop-loss in Iraq.
"Their contracts are up or will be up before their deployment is
over, but they're being forced to go."
A separate issue is the legality of keeping or deploying the solider
when it violates his or her contract with the military.
Lawyer Steven Goldberg represented reservist Emiliano Santiago in the
case, Santiago vs. Rumsfeld, in 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, in
2005, the highest court test yet of stop-loss appeals. Goldberg
argued that without the backing of Congress, President Bush (with
Rumsfeld as his agent) did not have the authority to unilaterally
bypass the terms of a soldier's contract when a soldier is not
already on active duty.
"It's hard for anybody to understand the terms of these contracts,"
said Goldberg in a phone interview, "but at least the Army should be
held to what's in the contract."
Santiago lost the case decisively and was shipped to Afghanistan
later that year.
Draft
Meanwhile the draft is still being tossed around as a potential
instrument of maintaining troop levels. The "War Czar," Lt. General
Douglas Lute, created a minor firestorm when questioned in August by
Michelle Norris of NPR about whether he foresaw a return to the draft.
The general responded, "I think it makes sense to certainly consider
it, and I can tell you, this has always been an option on the table,
but ultimately, this is a policy matter between meeting the demands
for the nation's security by one means or another." He quickly
modified his statement the following day.
But, according to Lieutenant Colonel Jonathan Withington, a spokesman
for the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Public Affairs, "There is
absolutely no consideration being given to reinstituting the draft."
Withington said a draft would return the armed services to a younger,
less-capable force at a higher cost.
"The Department of Defense supports continuing with an all-volunteer
force because it has resulted in a higher caliber of people serving
our country. The people serving are doing so because they want to,
and it is more cost-effective than a conscripted force."
He said the current volunteer force is cheaper than a draft force by
more than $4 billion annually.
Kelly Dougherty, executive director of Iraq Veterans Against the War,
and a veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom as a member of the Army
National Guard, said, "People say it's an all-volunteer army, but the
truth is many people's contracts have been extended, some
involuntarily extended. That's not only against an all-volunteer
military, but putting the same people in a combat zone again and
again and again… We get a lot of calls (asking) 'What should I do?
Should I go back?'"
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Draft Time line:
September, 1917- November, 1918- During U.S. involvement in World War
I, almost three million men entered military service through the draft..
1940- President Franklin Roosevelt created the country's first
peacetime draft and established the Selective Service System.
1943- Year of highest draft inductions- more than 3.3 million service members
November, 1940- October, 1946- World War II, over 10 million U.S. men
drafted into service
1948-1973 The draft functioned to fill vacancies in the armed forces
that were not be filled through voluntary means.
June 1950- June 1953- Korean War, 1.5 million and a half are drafted
into service
August,1964- February, 1973- Vietnam Conflict, almost two million are
drafted into service
1969- First draft lottery drawing since 1942. All men assigned a
certain lottery number were classified available for military service
and were called to report for possible induction.
1973- The draft ended and U.S. converted to an all-volunteer military
1975- Selective Service registration requirement was suspended
1980- President Carter resumed the registration requirement in
response to the Soviet Union's invasion of Afghanistan.
2007- Registration continues as a hedge against underestimating the
number of servicemen needed for a future military conflict.
-Time line data compiled by Selective Service Web site
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