Who has to register for Selective Service, and are there exceptions?

(NEXSTAR) – While ceasefire efforts continue in the Middle East, questions have remained about whether a military draft could happen in the U.S.

U.S troops are set to remain “in, and around, Iran,” President Donald Trump said Thursday, at least until there is a “real agreement.” The administration has, since the war started, maintained that a draft was not part of the plan while warning that Trump “wisely keeps his options on the table.”

There has not been a draft in the U.S. since the Vietnam War, with service being voluntary since 1973. As men of a certain age know, the Selective Service has not been voluntary.

For more than 45 years, registration for the Selective Service has been mandated for certain men. Should there be a “national emergency,” the U.S. would tap the Selective Service registry to “provide personnel to the Department of War and alternative service for conscientious objectors, if authorized by the President and Congress.”

Registering does not immediately enlist the man into the military, while veterans and reservists are not exempt from registering.

“By registering all young men, Selective Service System ensures that a future draft will be fair and just,” officials explain. Those........

© The Hill