Congressman Pat Tiberi

It was not going to be reinstated in the first place, but congressional action last week made it clear: There will be NO military draft. Hopefully, the overwhelming defeat of draft-related legislation in the House will end irresponsible rumors on the Internet and elsewhere that the government was poised to begin drafting young people into the military.

The falsehoods that were often anonymously spread about a possible reinstitution of the draft were pure garbage. I happened to pull up a communication about the matter from an urban legends web site on the Internet last week before the vote. It referred to legislation in both the House and Senate which would "time the program's initiation so the draft can begin as early as 2005--just after the 2004 presidential election." It also claimed that the administration "is quietly trying to get these bills passed..."

Let's set the record straight. This bill was not proposed by the administration. It was written by an anti-administration Democrat congressman from New York. His bill, the "Universal National Service Act," would compel all American citizens and permanent residents aged 18-26 to perform either military or civilian service.

The administration spoke out against this idea as often as possible. Time and time and time again, the administration had strongly stated its opposition to the draft. Nevertheless, malicious rumors such as the one I noted above continued to be spread that the draft was on its way back.

To put these rumors to rest once and for all, the House measure was brought up last week with the full expectation that it would be soundly defeated. The bill's sponsor actually had the gall to complain that his bill was going to be debated and voted on. I've been an elected official for a dozen years now. I've heard lawmakers moan countless times that their bills were being ignored and were not being given an opportunity for a vote. But I've never heard a lawmaker protest the fact that the bill he wrote was receiving consideration.

Talk about playing politics. I had to wonder how seriously the sponsor took his own bill if he didn't really want the House to vote on it. I didn't have to wonder long. When we called the roll on the draft bill, its author voted against it! In fact, his measure received only two votes out of a possible 435. It was overwhelmingly rejected, just as it should have been.

So that should end the discussion, right? Not if some who want to use the issue for political purposes have their way. Partisan Democrats were out spinning after the vote that a draft could still happen.

Don't you believe them. Even if it wanted to, the administration cannot implement a draft on its own--Congress must approve it. Now that the House has voted in the strongest possible terms against a draft, there simply is not going to be one.

Congressman Pat Tiberi represents Central Ohio in the U.S. House of Representatives and can be reached by email through his website, www.house.gov/tiberi.