Well, as much as I hate to admit it, those bills are bullshit. I would love to see Bush and his cronies get hammered for this, but it is not them that pushed it. This is an attempted setup from the Democrats. Bills S 89 and HR 163 (which was submitted in January 2003, i.e. before the Iraq war begun) were sponsored almost entirely by Democrats. In the words of one of the sponsers Pete Stark:

"Yet, war is on the horizon. The President is intent on invading Iraq whatever the cost. [...] The only real question that remains is whether or not Americans are ready and willing to bear the cost? [...] Reinstituting the draft may seem unnecessary to some. But, it will ensure all Americans share in the cost and sacrifice of war. Without a universal draft, this burden weighs disproportionately on the shoulders of the poor the disadvantaged and minority populations."

I tried to find out what happened to these bills, but they both vanished into a committe early last year and have not been seen since according to the congressional website.

Of course, this does not change the fact that Bush and the Pentagon have indeed taken steps to get the draft machinery back in working order, such as filling all the positions on the draft board and sending more money their way. It also does not change the fact that the U.S. military is seriously understaffed compared for what it is being asked to do right now, and a draft is increasingly looking like a real possibility if Bush gets re-elected.

Alas, the dumb Democrats shot themselves in the foot by muddying the waters here, and too many people negate any credibility they have by tying these issues together. Nevertheless, I am glad I am above draft age.