Charles Rangel's Career Ends

He has done this before. It is very obviously a disingenuous political stunt.

 

I hope it ends soon. The man is a terrible leader.

Joseph Botwinick

 

End of his political career........ you got to be kidding. He knows he's secure no matter what he does.

 

Ditto . . .

As many times as he has done it already, it has not ended his career.

And I think the draft is a GREAT idea.

Why should rich boys stay home and party on when their contemporaries are willing to die to keep them (& us) free . . .

I cannot believe it, but I aggree with him on this one.

:thumbs:

 

You mean like how Bush and Clinton went to Vietnam.

Who was the nfl football that went over and died? He was rich.

 

I believe you misunderestimate the benefit of a gerrymandered minority district.

Bottom line is he's getting the cart before the horse. Congress would first have to approve an increase in the size of our standing Army.

 

I think you should not have an army unless you need to use one. We don't need to use one unless we are attacked by another army, not by a band of 20 terrorists. If terrorists kill 4000 of us, we send in terrorist boys of our own until we kill 4000 of them in retribution, and when the reckoning is over, we come home. One of our lives is not worth 10 or 20 of theirs, despite what warped ideas we proud Americans have of ourselves.

 

Bad idea, the idea is to stop the problem before it starts.

 

“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,” Charles Rangle

 

I'd vote for Charlie Rangel for president but like Pat Moynahan was, is to smart to want the job.

 

I believe that it is a stunt but not necessarily without merit. What he's doing is highlighting the extreme hardships put on the voluntary army by requiring them to serve 3 or 4 or more tours of duty in Iraq. Does anyone believe that this is in the best interests of the military or our country?

Bush recognized that reinstating the draft would be political suicide but he was not willing to constrain the extent of the war based on a reasonable involvement by our individual troops. Will a volunteer army survive after this extreme mistreatment of our soldiers? I don't think so.

 

Anyone have any demographic information on the parents of our military volunteers? Unless it is completely out of line with the voting patterns of the soldiers themselves... most of them already come from the families that Rangel suggests aren't sacrificing enough.

This is just normal Charlie posturing. He's safe. He knows it. So he can say the most radical things and unless the earth moves he'll still be a Congressman.

Basically what he'd probably like to say is that it is racist. Unless I am mistaken the two groups over-represented in the military are white conservatives and minorities. He is more than likely not all that concerned with the children of white conservatives who voted for Bush being in harm's way.

 

BTW, I agree that the draft is unconstitutional... however the courts have consistently disagreed with us for most of our history.

 

He tried that gambit a few years ago and shot himself in the foot so badly he voted against his own legislation.

Whites are demonstrably over-represented in combat arms. Blacks are just as badly over-represented in support groups.

Made Rangel look like a fool.:laugh:

 

I think Congressman Rangel has brought up a valid point. I don't necessarily think we will see a renewed draft, but I admire his fortitude for bringing this to light. :thumbsup:

 

I'll be much more impressed, Terry, if he votes in favor of his own legislation this time.:thumbs:

 

The point is, it's easier when other people's kids are exposed. Make the sons of the rich liable to be sent, and suddenly, there's considerable caution in getting into unnecesary wars.

The problem is, there are always ways to avoid it, if you have the connections. Bush is the poster boy for such things.

Kerry was the exception. Not many rich kids saw combat in Vietnam.

 

Not many turned traitor, like Kerry, after they did, either.