In order to participate in the GunBroker Member forums, you must be logged in with your GunBroker.com account. Click the sign-in button at the top right of the forums page to get connected.

Clinton's Draft Deferrment

beneteaubeneteau Member Posts: 8,552 ✭✭✭
edited July 2015 in General Discussion
With the current discussion regarding Trump's avoiding military service, the media (liberals) have not mentioned anything about Slick Willy (Bill Clinton) pulling strings in the 60's to avoid the draft:

In the autumn of 1969, Clinton entered the draft but received a high number (311) and was never called to serve -- however, Clinton made every effort to avoid the draft prior to entering it.

First, Bill Clinton received education deferments while at Georgetown and Oxford (where he helped organize demonstrations against the war). Second, Clinton attempted to avoid the draft for four years by enrolling, but never joining, the Army Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC). Clinton had enrolled in the ROTC hoping to avoid military service for four years, but, wanting a future in politics, had a change of heart and entered the draft.

In December 1969, safe from the draft with his high lottery number, Clinton changed his mind about joining the ROTC program and wrote a letter to the director of the ROTC program thanking him "for saving me from the draft" and regretted misleading him by not revealing the extent of his opposition to the war. The letter was leaked by the Pentagon to ABC news early in the 1992 fueled criticism of candidate Clinton's character.

Later in the 1992 campaign, it became known that Clinton's uncle had attempted to get Bill Clinton a Navy Reserve assignment during the Vietnam war. Clinton said he didn't know anything about it to the press on September 3, 1992 but a day later admitted that a former draft board member had informed him of his uncles' attempt several months before.

March 20, 1968 - Clinton, age 21, is classified 1-A, eligible for induction, as he nears graduation from Georgetown.
--[Wash Post Sep 13 92]
Comment: Bill Clinton was the only man of his prime draft age classified1-A by that draft board in 1968 whose pre-induction physical examination was put off for 10.5 months. This delay was more than twice as long as anyone else and more than five times longer than most area men of comparable eligibility.
--[Los Angeles Times Sep 02 92]
Summer 1968 - Political and family influence keeps Clinton out of the draft. Robert Corrado -- the only surviving Hot Springs draft board member from that period -- concluded that Clinton's draft statement (the long delays) was the result of "some form of preferential treatment." According to the Times, "Corrado recalled that the chairman of the three-man draft panel ... once held back Clinton's file with the explanation that 'we've got to give him time to go to Oxford,' where the semester began in the fall of 1968.
Corrado also complained that he was called by an aide to then Senator J. William Fulbright urging him and his fellow board members to 'give every consideration' to keep Clinton out of the draft so he could attend Oxford.
Throughout the remainder of 1968, Corrado said, Clinton's draft file was routinely held back from consideration by the full board. Consequently, although he was classified 1-A on March 20, 1968, he was not called for his physical exam until Feb 3, 1969, while he was at Oxford.
Clinton's Uncle Raymond Clinton personally lobbied Senator Fulbright, William S. Armstrong, the chairman of the three-man Hot Springs draft board, and Lt. Comdr. Trice Ellis, Jr., commanding officer of the local Navy reserve unit, to obtain a slot for Clinton in the Naval Reserve.
Clinton secured a "standard enlisted man's billet, not an officer's slot which would have required Clinton to serve two years on active duty beginning within 12 months of his acceptance." This Navy Reserve assignment was "created especially for the Bill Clinton at a time in 1968 when no existing reserve slots were open in his hometown unit."
According to the LA Times, "after about two weeks waiting for Bill Clinton to arrive for his preliminary interview and physical exam, Ellis said he called (Clinton's uncle) Raymond to inquire - 'What happened to that boy?' According to Ellis, Clinton's uncle replied - 'Don't worry about it. He won't be coming down. "It's all been taken care of.' "
0M9InwN.gif[

Comments

  • Ray BRay B Member Posts: 11,822
    edited November -1
    But of course- he couldn't go into the military and risk life and limb- why he had important duties to perform...
  • ChrisInTempeChrisInTempe Member Posts: 15,562
    edited November -1
    The Clinton Error still negatively impacts our economy. But he's not a candidate, his wife is. Don't see the usefulness of fighting an old fight against a non-candidate.
  • chiefrchiefr Member Posts: 14,115 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Clinton is a Democrat.
    Media is owned by progressive socialist democrats.

    As a result, standards of conduct and behavior are much different between any R candidate and D candidate.

    Clinton was able to openly lie and have extra martial affairs and remain beyond reproach throughout his gubernatorial as well as presidential tenures simply because he was a democrat.
  • fideaufideau Member Posts: 11,895 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Pointing out the hypocrisy of the ones bringing up past indiscretions of one they want to smear may or may not be useful but it still is pointing out hypocrisy.
  • Smitty500magSmitty500mag Member Posts: 13,623 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    The point is if it didn't matter about Slick Willie draft dodging then why should it matter what Trump did?
  • ltcdotyltcdoty Member Posts: 4,184 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Seems to me that avoiding the draft was an intramural sport back in the late Sixties.
  • cce1302cce1302 Member Posts: 9,555 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    They haven't mentioned Nugent dodging the draft recently either, but that's not any more relevant than Clinton.
  • select-fireselect-fire Member Posts: 69,516 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    Hillary tried to go. They didn't need any flying brooms
  • Smitty500magSmitty500mag Member Posts: 13,623 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    quote:Originally posted by cce1302
    They haven't mentioned Nugent dodging the draft recently either, but that's not any more relevant than Clinton.


    Nugent was never president either.
  • cce1302cce1302 Member Posts: 9,555 ✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    quote:Originally posted by Smitty500mag
    quote:Originally posted by cce1302
    They haven't mentioned Nugent dodging the draft recently either, but that's not any more relevant than Clinton.


    Nugent was never president either.





    We can't do anything about Clinton.
  • Smitty500magSmitty500mag Member Posts: 13,623 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    quote:Originally posted by cce1302
    quote:Originally posted by Smitty500mag
    quote:Originally posted by cce1302
    They haven't mentioned Nugent dodging the draft recently either, but that's not any more relevant than Clinton.


    Nugent was never president either.





    We can't do anything about Clinton.


    I don't think anyone is trying to do "anything about Clinton" other than pointing out there's no difference in what Slick did compared to what Trump did during the draft years.
  • OakieOakie Member Posts: 40,565 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    quote:Originally posted by Ray B
    But of course- he couldn't go into the military and risk life and limb- why he had important duties to perform...On Monica and a few other lonely ladies[;)]


    Fixed it for ya
  • ChrisInTempeChrisInTempe Member Posts: 15,562
    edited November -1
    Whatever Trump did about the draft only matters because he has spoken out about someone who did serve and did time in the Hanoi Hilton. Had Trump not taken that particular path in his bloviations he would not have handed people something to beat him up with.

    So yes, demeaning a veteran who spent years in an enemy prison when you yourself dodged the draft makes your draft dodging more than fair game.
  • discusdaddiscusdad Member Posts: 11,427 ✭✭✭✭
    edited November -1
    eerily very similar to Dick Cheney's "i have other priorities in my life right now" then getting 4 defermentsquote:Originally posted by Ray B
    But of course- he couldn't go into the military and risk life and limb- why he had important duties to perform...
Sign In or Register to comment.