Something Trump and I Shared

Stephen Green does a column for PJ Media, and also posts at Instapundit. Here he lays out the rebuttal to the claim Donald John Trump dodged the draft. He cites his source and claims to have checked that the following is accurate.

• Trump registered for the draft after his 18th birthday on June 24, 1964 (draft dodgers don't register*). 
• He was given an S-2 (college) deferment on June 28, 1964 (perfectly legal, not a draft dodger). 
• His S-2 status was renewed on Dec 14, 1965 (legal, not a draft dodger), and he was then classified on Nov. 22, 1966, as 1-A (available for service). 
• Dec. 13, 1966, his S-2 was again granted to attend Wharton (legal, not a draft dodger). His final deferral was granted on Jan. 16, 1968. 
• After graduating from Wharton, he was reclassified 1-A on July 9, 1968. He went to his Armed Forces Physical (something a draft dodger probably would not do) on Sept. 19, 1968, and was categorized as 1-Y, disqualified for service except in war or national emergency (due to bone spurs in both heels). 
• He received a high draft lottery number and was never called up. On Feb. 17, 1972, after the abolishment of the 1-Y classification, he was classified 4-F (not qualified for military service).

President Trump and I are of roughly the same age, and guys a lot younger don't know much about the draft. I have met very few individuals who were aware of the 1-Y draft classification; most only knew of 1-A and 4-F. 

I know because I got a 1-Y myself. In my case the disqualifying issue was a blown rotator cuff in my left shoulder. If I lift my left arm over my head it can dislocate, something I've experienced a several times. It is more painful than you can imagine, I'm very careful not to let it happen.

The purpose of the 1-Y was that in the event of World War III, guys like me and "the Donald" could drive trucks, pound typewriters, run warehouses, and do other non-athletic stuff in uniform, freeing up healthy guys to be in the combat arms.

Fortunately, no total war occurred. We got "too old" to be drafted, and then the draft went away as the military became all-volunteer. 

My Selective Service record looks a lot like Trump's, I had college deferments, graduated, and was called for a draft physical. I was told to come back in a year, which I did. I was then given the 1-Y and told to go home and get on with my civilian life.

Good News from Down South

The Wall Street Journal uses the election of conservative Laura Fernandez to be Costa Rica's new president as the news "hook" for a discussion of conservatives winning elections across Latin America. The article is echoed on msn.com, making it available outside the WSJ paywall.

Hondurans late last year elected right-wing candidate Nasry Asfura, whom Trump publicly supported. Chileans in December voted in conservative Jose Antonio Kast. 

Bolivia in October ended two decades of socialist rule with the election of President Rodrigo Paz. And Argentina's libertarian leader, Javier Milei, cemented his hold on power in a crucial in a crucial midterm election in October.

A right-wing candidate is expected to win Peru's presidential election in April, polls show. Conservatives are also vying for power in elections later this year in Brazil and Colombia, which are ruled by left-wing presidents.

Also mentioned favorably is El Salvador's president Nayib Bukele, a hard-liner known for jailing thousands of violent criminal gang members, more or less permanently.