Russo releasing TV commercials urging Americans to resist military draft
Presidential candidate thanks Nader for following his lead and joining him to stop the coming military draft. He also demands Bush and Kerry sign pledge that under their leadership America will not have a military draft.
(PRWEB) April 22, 2004 -- Aaron Russo, leading contender (http://www.lp.org/lpnews/0405/russo_california-straw_poll.html, http://cass.molp.org/cgi-bin/vote.pl?name=Apr2004&action=view) for the Libertarian nomination for president, and famed Hollywood producer of the Rose and Trading Places, has made the pending draft one of his primary campaign issues. He has placed two powerful television advertisements (Change -http://russoforpresident.com/video/ads/Change.wmv and Choice - http://russoforpresident.com/video/ads/Choice.wmv) to awaken the American public that both political parties are encouraging forced national service on the youth of America. Both list the coming draft as a key campaign issue.
In a statement released yesterday, Russo said, "I would like to personally thank Mr. Nader for jumping onboard with me in bringing this issue to the forefront. Id like to see him personally join the thousands of others who have signed our petition which has been online since December, and urge his supporters to do the same. Even though we may disagree on some issues, we should join forces to make certain the American public knows that a military draft is imminent. We must not allow this unjustificed preemptive war in Iraq to spread like a cancer, destroying the youth of america."
Saturday, a message appeared at VoteNader.org informing students about the upcoming military draft. In it, independent presidential candidate Ralph Nader states, "The military draft comes to dominate the lives of America's young, and vast numbers who believe the war to be a senseless blunder are faced with fighting a war they do not believe in, or facing exile or prison."
Russo also responded to John Kerrys Call to Service press release with, "It is notable that Kerry failed to use the word 'mandatory in his press statement, but he openly uses it on the issues section of his web site. George W. Bush is currently staffing the draft boards and approving an increased budget. Being the only 3rd party candidate on the ballot in all 50 states, I will make the military draft a primary issue in the 2004 election, as my television commercials demonstrate. I call on Goerge Bush and John Kerry to sign a pledge that under their leadership, America will not have a military draft."
John Kerry calls for Creating a New Army of Patriots at johnkerry.com. [this was removed from Kerry's web site immediately following the release of our press release. More information may be obtained at http://russoforpresident.com/batm/flash.php/2004/04/14/p103] In a speech delivered at the Brookings Institute, Senator Hillary Clinton warns that the volunteer army is inadequate. The Selective Service Board was running an advertisement asking for men and women in the community who might be willing to serve as members of a local draft board. The Department of Defense has recently removed the posting from its web site. Independent.co.uk reported this morning that the head of US Central Command in Iraq, General John Abizaid, called on the Pentagon to send 10,000 more troops to Iraq to quell the uprising, back-tracking on a year-long aim to reduce the US military presence. Senate Bill S.89 was introduced by Senator Ernest Hollings [SC] and was referred to the Armed Services Committee. The House version, H.R. 163, was introduced by Rep. Charles Rangel [NY].
In an article at NewsMax.com, as well as in his speeches and other public appearances, Russo continues to raise public awareness about the issue. In an audio appeal on his web site, Russo says, "We open the newspaper and see John Kerry demanding "national service" and Hillary Clinton wailing about the "inadequacy" of a volunteer military and George W. Bush staffing the draft boards."
A petition exists at www.RussoForPresident.com, dated December 15, 2003, outlining reasons why a military draft is pending and urging citizens to sign the petition, which will be sent to the president, vice president, and members of the senate and congress.
When asked about strategic plans regarding bringing public awareness to the issue of mandatory national service, Russo spokesperson Stephen Gordon responded with "The petition to stop the draft was placed on our web site in December, and we have collected literally thousands of signatures since then. Additionally, we are addressing the draft issue in our first two television commercials, which should begin airing over the next several weeks. We are currently making plans for campus rallies across the country, where, amongst other things, students will be burning fake draft cards."
He added, "An interesting sideline is that Thomas Knapp, one of our key staffers and editor of the online journal RationalReview, was recently chosen as a member of his local Selective Service Board."
Russo emphasizes that the current draft legislation will not only impact young men, but young women as well, "There may be slight differences of degree, and one party may be more honest than the other on this subject -- but make no mistake about it, they're both coming for your sons and daughters."
"As your president, I'll issue an executive order halting Selective Service registration. I'll veto any conscription or "national service" legislation presented to me by Congress. And if they override my veto, my administration will take the matter all the way to the Supreme Court on the plain language of the 13th Amendment, which forbids involuntary servitude. Americans have always rallied to their country's defense when they are needed. Conscription is the last refuge of a government that cannot justify its actions to those people and so must enslave them to have its way."
Press Contact:
Max Hirshman
(323) 936-5342
max@russoforpresident.com
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