Based on false pretenses of weapons of mass destruction and involvement in the 9/11 attacks, the unfunded war in Iraq has cost our nation not only $800 billion dollars, but the lives of more than 4,400 brave American patriots. Over 32,000 U.S. soldiers have also been seriously wounded in the war we should not have been in the first place.
It is because of these devastating statistics and the commitment our nation must make to sharing in duty and service that I reintroduced the Universal National Service Act, commonly known as the draft bill.
Currently the burden of defending our nation is carried by an increasingly smaller segment of our population. Only 1 percent of the American population currently makes the sacrifice of laying down life and limb for our country.
Far too many are being forced into repeated tours of duty, sometimes as many as six deployments. This repeated combat exposure to our troops is why 25 percent of America's active duty military personnel suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). It is why the Army's current suicide rate is far above the civilian rate at 22-per-100,000. The rate for the Marine Corps is even higher.
