The Senate passed a defense bill yesterday that will require women to sign up for Selective Service, and potentially be drafted in the future. The bill will place the existing requirements for young men on women as well, and the new rules will apply to any woman who turns 18 beginning in 2018.

Senator John McCain, who serves as the chairman of the Armed Services Committee stated:

The fact is every single leader in this country, both men and women, members of the military leadership, believe that it’s fair since we opened up all aspects of the military to women that they would also be registering for Selective Services.

The head of each military branch has also stated support for the inclusion of women in the draft.

The National Defense Authorization Act passed 85-13–some of the votes against it came from Republicans who oppose including women in the draft. Right now this provision is only in the Senate version of the bill–the House chose not to include it–so that will have to get ironed out before this even goes to President Obama for consideration. But it seems like a common-sense next step after the military has made moves to fully integrate women into combat. The debate over whether or not to include women in the draft really heated up this winter; check out our coverage back when the Senate Armed Services Committee heard testimony about the idea from top military officials.

But, the debate continues. Senator Ted Cruz, for example, spoke out against including women in the draft, saying:

It is a radical change that is attempting to be foisted on the American people. The idea that we should forcibly conscript young girls into combat, to my mind, makes little or no sense. It is at a minimum a radical proposition. I could not vote for a bill that did so, particularly that did so without public debate.

It’s important to remember that the draft hasn’t been used by the United States since the Vietnam War. But depending on the how the House responds, women may start having to sign up with Selective Service soon.

Anneliese Mahoney

Anneliese Mahoney is Managing Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

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An amendment to the House’s annual defense authorization bill could require women to register for the draft in upcoming years. If passed, the amendment would require both men and women to register for Selective Service when they reach the age of 18. The amendment to this bill comes in the wake of a change in military policy to get rid of any gender-based restrictions on front-line combat.

This amendment was proposed by Senator Duncan Hunter, a Republican from California, in an attempt to start a discussion about the lifted gender restrictions on military service. Interestingly enough, he does not support women being in the front lines of duty or being drafted in the military. The only reason he raised this amendment was to get a conversation started in Congress about this policy because Hunter does not believe that the executive branch should be making decisions about American defense policy.

In order to convince members of Congress not to vote for the amendment, Hunter gave a speech that involved a lot of rhetoric about the dangers of war. This speech included phrases like “a draft is there to put bodies on the front lines to take the hill” and “the draft is there to get more people to rip the enemies’ throats out and kill them.” Hunter’s intent with this speech was to use graphic imagery as a way to dissuade people from voting for the amendment.

Unfortunately for Hunter, his plan didn’t go as well as expected. Several representatives spoke up in favor of the amendment after it was suggested. Representative Jackie Speier, a Democrat from California, had a lot to say:

I actually think if we want equality in this country, if we want women to be treated precisely like men are treated and that they should not be discriminated against, we should be willing to support a universal conscription.

She believes that “there’s great merit in recognizing that each of us have an obligation to be willing to serve our country in a time of war.”

Even Senator John McCain spoke up in favor of including women in the draft, saying that:

As far as [he’s] concerned, if we’re going to put women into combat roles then that’s certainly logical, but [he’d] like to consult with the committee.

It’s obviously important to look at the whole picture when deciding on a policy change that could affect a lot of people across the country. To be fair, the draft hasn’t been used in over four decades since it was used to compile an army during the Vietnam War. People high up in the military claim that the likelihood of the draft being used any time soon, if at all, is pretty slim. The good news is that even the consideration of the amendment is a step forward in terms of gender equality. Women now have more rights than ever in the military, an accomplishment that should be celebrated.

Alexandra Simone

Alex Simone is an Editorial Senior Fellow at Law Street and a student at The George Washington University, studying Political Science. She is passionate about law and government, but also enjoys the finer things in life like watching crime dramas and enjoying a nice DC brunch. Contact Alex at ASimone@LawStreetmedia.com

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Because “deflategate” can apparently never die for Boston sports fans, Patriots fans are now suing the NFL to block one of the penalties that the league handed down. Seven irate fans want the team’s draft picks reinstated, and have filed a lawsuit in federal court to that effect.

The penalties for deflategate were highly contested from the beginning–the original decision by the league to suspend quarterback Tom Brady for four games was been put on hold by a judge and appeals are still ongoing. One of the other penalties levied by the NFL, however, was the loss of two draft picks for the Massachusetts-based team–this year’s first round draft pick, as well as 2017’s fourth round draft pick.

The suit, Orsatti v. NFL, is filed against the NFL, Roger Goddell, the NFL commissioner who has already received plenty of flak over his handling of deflategate, as well as the owner of the Patriots, Robert Kraft. While it could seem weird to sue Kraft, the man whose team is actually negatively affected by the penalty, the lawsuit claims that he didn’t do enough to fight against the revocation of the Patriots’ draft picks. It states:

Defendant Robert Kraft had remedies to attempt to get plaintiffs’ draft pick back, but he chose his fellow billionaire owners above the plaintiffs and fellow fans.

The lawsuit claims that Goddell, Kraft, and the NFL as a whole have broken a number of laws ranging from consumer protection issues to racketeering. As a result, the fans who filed the suit allege that they have experienced: “embarrassment, ridicule and depression due to the rest of the country who is jealous of the Patriots ‘piling on’ and criticizing the Patriots and their fans for being ‘cheaters.'”

However, legal experts are saying that this lawsuit probably won’t go too far. ESPN talked to Michael McCann, a sports law professor at the University of New Hampshire Law School, who pointed out that the fans bringing the suit don’t really have standing. He stated: “paying for a ticket to watch the Patriots play isn’t interfered with by the team losing a draft pick or two.” While it seems likely that we’ll continue to hear about deflategate as the legal side of the controversy continues to make its way through court, this particular case appears to be dead on arrival.

Anneliese Mahoney

Anneliese Mahoney is Managing Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

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Since the United States first introduced the Selective Service System in 1940, only men in the U.S. have been required to register with the government agency in the case a draft needs to be implemented. However, with recent news that all combat jobs in the U.S. military are going to be opened up to women, some top U.S. military officials are now acknowledging that women should be registered for future military drafts as well.

General Mark A. Milley, chief of staff of the Army, and General Robert B. Neller, the Marine Corps commandant, both testified at a hearing in front of the Senate Armed Services Committee earlier today; they agreed that it’s time to register women for the draft. Senator Claire McCaskill, who also supports including women in the Selective Service registry sparked the conversation when she asked the two officials about it. However, other leaders, including Navy Secretary Ray Mabus and Army Acting Secretary Patrick Murphy only said that the issue should be researched and discussed.

Currently, only men between the ages of 18-25 are required to register with Selective Service in the U.S.–although there are exceptions, such as men who are handicapped, or foreign nationals in the U.S. on student visas. There is also “conscientious objector status” which can be claimed by someone who objects to serving  in the military on moral or religious principles. According to the Selective Service website:

Beliefs which qualify a registrant for CO status may be religious in nature, but don’t have to be. Beliefs may be moral or ethical; however, a man’s reasons for not wanting to participate in a war must not be based on politics, expediency, or self-interest. In general, the man’s lifestyle prior to making his claim must reflect his current claims.

The information maintained by the Selective Service System is to be used in the case of a draft. However, a draft hasn’t actually been implemented in the United States since 1973, during the Vietnam War.

There are obviously a lot of steps that would need to be put in place before young women would be required to sign up for the draft; even the integration of women in all combat roles is expected to take up to three years. But as that process gets started, it may be something that we hear about more and more.

Anneliese Mahoney

Anneliese Mahoney is Managing Editor at Law Street and a Connecticut transplant to Washington D.C. She has a Bachelor’s degree in International Affairs from the George Washington University, and a passion for law, politics, and social issues. Contact Anneliese at amahoney@LawStreetMedia.com.

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