Lute says it ‘makes sense’ to ‘consider’ military draft

August 11, 2007

Lt. Gen. Douglas Lute, confirmed by the Senate in June to serve as the president’s war advisor (aka, the “war czar”), has kept a remarkably low profile. NSA Stephen Hadley told reporters a while back that Lute would be “up close to the president” to work “full time, 24/7” on implementing Bush’s war policy, but that apparently includes practically disappearing from public view.

In fact, Lute has not been mentioned by Bush, Cheney, or any White House spokesperson, in any context, since he was confirmed. I was beginning to think we may want to put his face on milk-cartons.

Yesterday, Lute finally emerged — and immediately sparked a controversy.

Frequent tours for U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan have stressed the all-volunteer force and made it worth considering a return to a military draft, President Bush’s new war adviser said Friday.

“I think it makes sense to certainly consider it,” Army Lt. Gen. Douglas Lute said in an interview with National Public Radio’s “All Things Considered.”

“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,” said Lute, who is sometimes referred to as the “Iraq war czar.” It was his first interview since he was confirmed by the Senate in June.

And with that, we may not be hearing from Lute again anytime soon.

In case there’s any ambiguity, or concern that Lute was taken out of context, here’s the exact exchange from the NPT transcript:

NORRIS: You know, given the stress on the military and the concern about these extended deployments for an all-volunteer military, can you foresee, in the future, a return to the draft?

LUTE: You know, that’s a national policy decision point that we have not yet reached, Michele, because the…

NORRIS: But does it make sense militarily?

LUTE: 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. Today, the current means of the all-volunteer force is serving us exceptionally well. It would be a major policy shift – not actually a military, but a political policy shift to move to some other course.

National Security Council spokesman Gordon Johndroe said, “The president’s position is that the all-volunteer military meets the needs of the country and there is no discussion of a draft. Gen. Lute made that point as well.”

Perhaps, but I don’t think that will necessarily quell the controversy.

I think there SHOULD be a draft! And, mandatory public service by younger persons.
And, NO exemptions for the wealthy.

Maybe if we had a draft, we’d have fewer wars.

  • Many modern civilized nations have a two-year universal service requirement which can be met through military and non-military ways. Sounds as sensible as universal health care, free education for all who qualify, substantial annual vacations for all, paid paternity and maternity leave, huh?

    That might be one we America doesn’t have a draft: it would be too civilized.

  • or, here’s an idea. if you brought those 160,000 troops home from iraq, you wouldn’t have that problem either.

  • At one time I opposed a draft under all circumstances. I have been having second thoughts because of this endless mess in Iraq.

    Would it be possible to fight this war with a drafted military? Would Mitt Romney think this war was such a great idea if several of his five sons were stationed there rather than fighting for him on the battlefields of Iowa? Would the college campuses be silent with a draft in place, or would they be hotbeds of antiwar activity as they were during Vietnam?

    We discuss constantly how the Republican enthusiasts for this war are usually chicken-hawks who never exposed themselves or their children to the consequences of their policies. When there was a draft, at least they risked sending their own sons (not yet daughters) to battle.

    At least some of them did. A few who were exceptionally well-connected were able to get their sons into something like the Texas Air National Guard.

  • As usual, Bush wants what he wants without taking responsibility for the incongruities in his ideology and political posture. Bottom line is that the U.S. can’t sustain the kind of military action he has undertaken without a draft.

    Any honorable, rational being would recognize it’s one or the other and make a choice. Bush, being Bush, has a third way — refuse to choose and leave the mess to the next administration. It’s the cowardly way out, like running up deficits and cutting taxes. It’s the Republican way out.

  • It’s amazing to me how conservatives, who scream every time a tax is mentioned that will require some of their financial investment, are so easily and quickly willing to agree to a tax of mandatory lifetime on a very selective population.

    The idea that if we had a draft, we’d have fewer wars is silly – what in our nation’s history would suggest that to be the case?

    Finally, let’s talk about the military like it was a corporation – say a mining operation. You spend a lot of money on training career folks – do they get the most dangerous jobs? Or, do those jobs go to the minimum wage, minimum trained people in which the least investment is in? What, exactly, do we think “draftees” will be getting out of this?

  • Ain’t gonna happen.

    Bush/Cheney will hire third-world mercenaries first.
    They’ll privatize this war to the max.
    Throw the bill onto the USA credit card…
    And defray some expenses by promising citizenship after several tours of duty.

  • Well, it is nice to see Gen. Lute is as out of touch as his boss. Where does he think he would find support for a draft? I think you would see draft riots before you saw actual soldiers come out of any attempt to reinstate the draft at this point of a hugely unpopular war.

  • I think I would druther a draft than mercenaries… so that all of us feel the pain, not just those who need a job or just got out of jail.

    But in the end our only business in Iraq, Afghanistan (and coming soon to Iran) is …you guessed it…OIL. That’s it. Period. no mas. All the rest is hyperbole/propaganda that allows the Corrupt Corporate Cronies to profit and do as they please: The hell with people …. in Iraq or America or anywhere… it is all about:

    America by and for the Corporations…

  • I don’t see how anyone in the supposedly free market administration can be in favor of the draft.

    If we need to increase the size of the army then the ONLY free market solution is to increase the pay of the military and keep raising it until you get enough people to sign up.

    Of course, since we all know that it is OUR money and not the government’s money then we should have a tax cut and then the people who want to fund the military should do it in the private sector.

    After all, if those people in Minnesota had more tax cuts then the users of the bridge would have grouped together and made sure the bridge was safe.

    Do you think I had too much Kool-Aid this morning????

  • This is how Bush floats his ideas and test the waters. A war draft that MOST Americans feel they were LIED into, is trouble water deep enough to sink a president and his VP, absolutely.

    I,mean , WHY iwould Lute discussion IT on NPR without the consent of the Commander and Chief? He wouldn’t without express okay.

    “The president’s position is that the all-volunteer military meets the needs of the country and there is no discussion of a draft. Gen. Lute made that point as well.” – the Repug candidates should love this but goes right inline with Cheney say to his GOP brethern: We didn’t get elected to worry just about the fate of the Republican Party, so I’m suprised the GOP is still worried the fate of Bush and Dick Cheney.

    Bush’s war czar didn’t just go out and WING this one. NO sir, not without Cheney’s big OKAY – “Lute, go out and talk about the military draft.”

    I’m sure Lute gave Cheney a fine salute and a stalwart “YES SIR”.

    SO now, we will hear from Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-NY) next? Cause this is usually his cue to start saying “it would get us out of Iraq if there’s a draft” pretending like this is way to get rid of Bush, and it could also get Rangled un-elected too – as well it should. But it may not keep Rangel from yet again introducing his Military Draft Bill, under bipartisan support (and mostly big oil support), of course. And of course Hillary has already said in one of her recent debates, the Yearly Kos one, that she supported a national program for American youth that would require they serve their country in some capacity – very close to a military draft in a time when we were LIED into a war in Iraq. It was a very BIG RED FLAG for me. There should be no doubt that Hillary still supports this war.

    And on Meet the Press – I think Doris Kearns Goodwin nail it with this:

    I think if we can just shift the dialogue away—we’re spending too much time entertaining ourselves, and this is much too important, as we’ve seen from candidates who get in there who have all these terrible traits in the past, but we never knew about them, and suddenly—they’re not going to change.

    That was problem witht the Kearly Kos debate in a nutshell.

    I mean Bill Clinton was the OTHER president who incouraged a pre-emptive war in Iraq and said Iraq had WMD too, using exactly the same lack of evidence Bush use to promote war in Iraq – and when Wilson says that Bush’s talk about yellow cake was a lie, it was Bill Clinton that said “those 16 words were just a mistake” – right – it was NO mistake and Mr. Clinton knew that too.

    BECAUSE we still don’t know where Hillary stands on this war thing, with her saying she’ll keep some troops in Iraq – trying to save those billion dollar military bases, and what, prop up the those private security militas in Iraq? Frankly, I think that would be impossible, because the bases would be as big a target as the Kobar Towers where to every terrorist in the Mideast. Hillary says she going to get our troops out of Iraq, some of them??? We NEED to know WHEN she will start that process – how long it will take.

    AND is she planning on implementing this so-called “Youth Services for American” – a Hillary style of back door draft, whereby young people are coerced into serving in the military – she is NOT leveling with the voters on this issue, NOT even close. We’ve got to pin her down on it. AND yet the liberal blogs seem to think that it is impolite to ask the MOST important question of WHY we need change from Bush.

    I not sure Hillary is a change and I not feeling any better about with talk from War Czar Lute.

    NPR broadcast goes on to say, –if the president wants to sustain a substantial number of U.S. troops in Iraq beyond the next 18 months, he should call for reinstating the draft.

    Too bad, I guess Bush will just have to withdraw and that’s a pity really – cause I really don’t see how big oil company’s can maintain those private security forces in Iraq – hired militia mercenaries without support from the US military, a number is nearly matches the amount of US forces in Iraq – AND this is another big question for Hillary – why will she do with Western Oil contractors, see as how they skirt the law, and their hired militia mercenaries in Iraq?

  • Okay the draft is button A1 on my jukebox of outrage. I’m assuming that those in favor of a draft are all 18-22 year olds.

    There are lots of better ways to prevent this problem than enslaving every American who turns 18. Providing unlimited amounts of cannon fodder will not discourage politicians from their wars. Like just bill said, bring our 160k troops home and we’ll have plenty of them.

  • Oh and another thing – does DailyKos founder Markos Moulitsas know that Chervon had some kind of legal fine – 30 million fine for some 20 million illegal bribes in Iraq? I can’t find the link to it, it’s been scrub, as I’ve noticed that happens a lot when you going looking for anything negative on big name corporations, particular Western oil contractors, but it is somewhere out there, and if someone has access to recent legal cases – then someone could find it I’m sure.

    But Moulitsas lets Chervon advertise on website and he got very nasty to anyone who protested it, as does Atrios blogsite Eschaton. So what I want to know is the fact that I’m sure Chervon hires it’s own security forces in Iraq – the one Moulitsas appears to hates so much – and he can’t really talk to Hillary about those lobbyist campaign moneys – I mean, Moulitsas can’t really judge Hillary if he is doing the same thing himself. It is amazing how much the money can compromise one’s principles on just about anything. The Clinton’s Marc Rich scandel is a prime example of that fact.

  • Did the reporter ask where the hell he’s been and what the hell he does to earn a paycheck? Oh well.

    I bet this isn’t the last we hear of the idea of mandatory service. Lute was just floating it to see what sort of response it gets. I suspect Bush wouldn’t dare a full draft but he might try compelling people doing time for certain crimes to serve. And our prisons are just chock-full of brown guys, aren’t they?

    As his mummy would say “These people didn’t have much to begin with…”

  • Sure, let’s have a draft. The First Elite Brigade — every “hawk” politician and/or son/daughter of same, in the 18-42 age range. And the First Hot Air Brigade — ditto for pundicks. Leaving for the training camps Sept 1, and in place in Iraq by Oct 15.

    Either put your money where your mouth is or stick your foot in it permanently and shut up. Leave the rest of us alone.

  • This is pretty worrisome. Bush needs a draft to continue his quest for global domination. We’re already employing 10’s of thousands of mercenaries. We’ll use mercs as cannon fodder, but we need Americans to run the high tech stuff. That’s our only edge in war, and we will never give that stuff to mercs or third world countries.

    The reason it is worrisome is that, while Bush MUST have his draft, the American people won’t go for it. Something will have to give, and I don’t think Bush is thinking it will be him. Watch for a big terrorist attack, followed by a state of emergency / martial law, followed by a nationwide draft.

    BTW, wars are easier with the draft. Vietnam went on much longer than Iraq before Americans turned against it, and we had a better press corps back then.

    People in those days argued in favor of a volunteer army, precisely becuase if we got into an unpopular war, voluneers would dry up, putting the kibosh on further war. That is exactly what is happening now. In other words, the volunteer army is working as intended. The draft is really warmongers’ only option for endless war.

  • Shargash

    I don’t doubt we’ll see some kind of national “emergency” that will push us into martial law before the end of Bush’s term. But since Bush and the Republicans own this war, I think there will be few who will actually report. Having seen how badly they have screwed up passports it will take years for the administration to round up the missing bodies.

  • I don’t think the draft is a good idea. I like the fact that our fighting force is all volunteer, even though way too many Americans volunteer for the air force. I have spoken to many of my fellow soldiers. We DO NOT want draftees in our professional military. I joined before 9/11, I will continue to serve.

  • I think it makes perfect scense to reinstat the draft, I think every American male should serve at least two years in the US armed forces. I did not serve do to family reasons but if I were to be drafted I would go proudly. I think it should be a concern on every american males mind to do something honorable for his country. My Grandfathers are world war 2 and Korean war veterans, and I would be proud to follow in there foot steps.

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