DoD Officials Make Case for Keeping the Draft, Women Included

The Selective Service System is an "inexpensive insurance policy" against a national emergency and should be modified to include women, a senior Defense Department official implied last week during a hearing on the future of draft registration in the U.S. Asked whether requiring women to register for a potential draft would "result in a more lethal military," Assistant Secretary of Defense for Manpower and Reserve Affairs James Stewart avoided answering the question directly, instead pointing out that all military occupations are now open to men and women and the military basically looks "for standards." Until now, the Defense Department has stayed silent on the proceedings of the National Commission on Military, National and Public Service, which is conducting a three-year review of public service in America, considering whether the U.S. needs the Selective Service System and if women should be required to register. Read more about women in the draft on Military.com.