463 Military deferments in the 1960s

After watching the Democrats complain about Cheney's deferments, I asked my husband if he knew how many deferments he had had during the 60s. He didn't have a clue. Most men of that era probably don't. I wonder how long it would take to dig up records of the Indianapolis draft board from 1957-1967. (I haven't researched this date, but I think after age 28, you weren't drafted, so age was also a factor. During WWI my grandfather was required to sign up for the draft at age 44.)

It is my recollection that we had to report anything that would change his classification. One time he was out of school to earn money and found out he was within 2 numbers of being called, so he re-enrolled. It was a constant roller coaster, and whether each change was a deferment, I don't know.

There were many ways to get deferments--education was the big one, and having a baby was probably next. Then they decided to defer all married men, so I assume some guys got married. There was nothing "fair" about the draft, just like taxes on the rich--there are always loop-holes for those who can afford accountants and tax lawyers and shelter their wealth in foundations. We were poor and at the bottom, so that only left an educational deferment (besides, we had married while undergraduates).

It was a very badly run war and I never met a single guy who wanted to go. "Volunteers," like Kerry, had been denied their deferments (he told the Harvard Crimson when the war was unpopular). I'm sure there were actual volunteers; I just never met any. I had a classmate who had enlisted in 1957, and went back for the Gulf War, but I think he was out when VietNam heated up.

There are many urban legends out there about Bill Clinton's deferments, but this site seems to set the record straight. The fact is, deferments were legal, and I don't recall anyone my age or 10 years younger who turned down the opportunity to defer their military service.

Democrats had no problem with Clinton’s record. The so called “new” revelations about Bush’s National Guard service don’t sound particularly startling. It has long been known that during his final year he served the minimum days. All this was vetted in 2000 by his opponents in the Republican primaries. What is clear is that he hasn’t asked anyone to elect him because of his VietNam era service.