By: Angel Clark
There has been speculation regarding President Obama’s “citizen army”. In 2008, President Obama made statements regarding a “civilian national security force”. Since that day, many have been curious as to what President Obama had in mind when he made that statement. Rep. Charles Rangel (D-NY13) may have just given a bit of insight into what was meant when he introduced H.R. 748 last week.
“We cannot continue to rely on our military in order to achieve the national security objectives we’ve set. We’ve got to have a civilian national security force that’s just as powerful, just as strong, just as well-funded,” Obama said as a candidate in 2008.
H.R. 748 would require all persons in the United States between the ages of 18 and 25 to perform “national service”. These persons in the United States would either serve the country as a member of uniformed services or as civilian service. The civilian service could be served with a Federal, State, or local government program. The local government programs include community-based organizations. H.R. 748 would “authorize the induction of persons in the uniformed services during wartime to meet end-strength requirements of the uniformed services, to provide for the registration of women under the Military Selective Service Act, and for other purposes”
H.R. 748 was introduced on Feb. 14, 2013 and was referred to the House Armed Services Committee the same day. The chair of the committee, Rep. Buck McKeon (R-CA) will determine whether the bill will move past the committee stage. Opponents and of H.R. 748 are being encouraged to call Rep. McKeon and tell him how they feel about the bill, (202) 225-1956, (661) 274-9688, (661) 254-2111. They are also encouraged to send him tweets and post on his Facebook page. Many are also contacting Rep. Rangel by calling him, (202) 225-4365, tweeting him, and posting on his Facebook page.