Senate Candidate in Montana, Amid Opposition to the War in Iran, Pledges To Draft Senator Graham

A libertarian running for Senate in Montana is pushing to conscript into the fight a key supporter of the war in Iran, Senator Lindsey Graham. The candidate, Thomas “Tom” Jandron, proposal is grabbing attention. His proposal, though, is out of step for a candidate touting himself as “defending,” on constitutional grounds, “individual liberty” against “government overreach.” “If elected,” Mr. Jandron wrote Wednesday on X, “the first bill I introduce will draft Lindsey Graham into any conflict he publicly supports while in office.” The post was approaching 2.4 million views as of Sunday. The candidate followed up with a link to donate to his campaign, making the most of his viral moment.On his website, Mr. Jandron describes himself as an “advocate for constitutional government” who stands for “restoring the principles of the Constitution.” Yet what he described is a bill of attainder, an unconstitutional act that imposes punishment on a single citizen.Congress can only pass conscription legislation for a group or class of people. In any case, there is no draft. America has relied on an all-volunteer force ever since President Nixon ended it in 1972, although American men over 18 are required to register for the Selective Service should the need for a draft arise. Friday on X, Mr. Jandron expanded his idea to “draft neocons like Lindsey Graham first,” saying it was “already making huge waves.” “Neocons,” though, is an ill-defined label. Some use it to refer to liberals who moved right. Others employ it as a slur for Jewish conservatives. Mr. Graham is a Southern Baptist.Calls for the privileged to fight are as old as the republic. President Washington’s stepson, John “Jacky” Custis, served as his aide during the Revolution. He died of “camp fever,” a euphemism for diseases like typhoid and dysentery, just after the Battle of Yorktown. President Lincoln’s son, Robert, joined President Grant’s staff.When the Civil War draft allowed wealthy men like President Cleveland to hire substitutes, cries soon arose of “rich man’s war, poor man’s fight.” All four of President Franklin Roosevelt’s sons saw action in World War II. During the Vietnam War, President Lyndon Johnson’s son-in-law, Senator Charles Robb, served in the Marine Corps.Mr. Graham can’t be charged with never “doing his bit,” as it was called in World War II. He served 33 years as a Judge Advocate General, including during the Iraq and Afghanistan campaigns. He retired in 2015 as a colonel of the U.S. Air Force. Plus, the anger at Mr. Graham has often resulted from mischaracterizations of his position on Iran.“To all the antisemites,” he said on Fox News Channel earlier this month, “to all the isolationists, forget it.” These antecedents were eliminated by a high-profile podcaster, Megyn Kelly, when she posted video of the remarks.“I’m not with you,” is how Mr. Graham begins Ms. Kelly’s truncated quote, words that followed him addressing specific groups. “I’m with Israel. I’ll be with Israel to our dying day. They’re the best ally we could hope for.” His rebuke of antisemitism and isolationism spread to frame the senator as loyal to the Jewish state over America. Another quote by Mr. Graham was regarded as a proposal to drag children from their homes to ship them overseas. “I’m going back to South Carolina,” he said. “I am asking them to send their sons and daughters to the Mideast.” This was in the spirit of a recruiter for the volunteer force, “asking” young people to serve in a cause he sees as just.Misrepresentations like these have helped make Mr. Graham a lightning rod for opponents of military action against Tehran’s regime. As the Democrat of New York, Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, said, “Everyone is entitled to their own opinion, but they are not entitled to their own facts.”Mr. Jandron and others who reject Mr. Graham’s rationale for disarming Iran are within their rights to criticize him. Suggesting an unconstitutional move to force him into combat or mischaracterizing his record undermines their arguments. Such tactics may make waves online, but they also validate the adage that truth is the first casualty of war.

Senate Candidate in Montana, Amid Opposition to the War in Iran, Pledges To Draft Senator Graham

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