Bush Unlikely to Bring Back Draft

WASHINGTON - President Bush does not want Congress to bring back the military draft for his campaign against terrorism, his spokesman said Wednesday.

"There is no consideration of that at this time," White House press secretary Ari Fleischer said. "And from my conversations with the Pentagon, it's not something they anticipate."

From 1948 until 1973, hundreds of thousands of men were drafted into the armed forces in times of war and peace. Presidential authority for the draft expired July 1, 1973, three months after the last U.S. soldiers left Vietnam. The military then became an all-volunteer force.

Registration for the draft was suspended in April 1975 and resumed again in 1980 by then-President Carter in response to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. The law requires that all young men living inside the United States and its territories register with the Selective Service within 30 days of their 18th birthday. That includes immigrants and non-citizen residents of the United States.

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