Scooped

Local television news had this story Saturday afternoon, but AmericaBlog has the post:

As the head of the Selective Service System, William Chatfield said Saturday in Baton Rouge that he hears questions about a draft call a lot lately.

"From everything I hear, right now, the all-volunteer Army is sufficient," he said.

Aravosis points Mr. Chatfield to this article:

The Army announced yesterday that it missed its recruiting goal for the fourth consecutive month, a deepening manpower crisis that officials said would require a dramatic summer push for recruits if the service is to avoid missing its annual enlistment target for the first time since 1999.

The Army will make a "monumental effort" to bring in the average 10,000 recruits a month required this summer, said Maj. Gen. Michael D. Rochelle, head of the Army's recruiting command. An additional 500 active-duty recruiters will be added in the next two months -- on top of an increase of 1,000 earlier this year.

The Pentagon is also considering asking Congress to double the enlistment bonus it can offer to the most-prized recruits -- from $20,000 to $40,000 -- and to raise the age limit for Army active-duty service from 35 to 40, he said.

"The challenge is one of historic proportions," Rochelle said, acknowledging that he is not sure whether the traditional summer surge in Army recruits will take place, or how large it might be.

I'm pretty sure the draft would be reinstated only as a final option...but we're rapidly running out of alternatives.