White House won’t rule out a draft as Iran war raises fears

Leavitt’s answer raises a big question

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt appeared on Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures” on March 8, 2026, and gave an answer that stopped a lot of parents cold.

Host Maria Bartiromo asked about fears that children could be drafted or sent to fight in Iran.

Leavitt said the president does not remove options from the table, but added that a draft is not part of the current plan right now.

White House pushes back on the coverage

The White House disputed the way Leavitt’s comments were reported, saying the media mischaracterized what she said.

When fact-checkers asked for more detail, the White House pointed reporters back to Leavitt’s full statement without adding anything new.

Snopes noted the original answer was unclear about whether Leavitt meant a draft specifically or just the possibility of ground troops in Iran. The administration did not issue a clearer statement.

Trump addresses ground troops on Air Force One

A day earlier, on March 7, Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One that ground troops could be sent, but only for a very good reason.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth added that the administration would not disclose operational limits to the enemy or the press.

The current military effort, Operation Epic Fury, has run mainly as an air campaign since it started Feb. 28. No ground deployment has been announced.

Both parties push back hard

The remarks drew criticism from Republicans and Democrats alike. Former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene said she campaigned on no more foreign wars or regime change.

Sen. Patty Murray, a Democrat from Washington, called the Iran conflict a war of choice.

Some prominent conservatives outside Congress have also criticized the war as going against Trump’s stated America First agenda. The draft question sharpened the debate for both sides.

Reinstating a draft takes an act of Congress

The U.S. has not drafted anyone into military service since 1973. The military has run as an all-volunteer force for more than 50 years.

Bringing back a draft would require Congress to amend the Military Selective Service Act and the president to sign it into law. The president cannot draft American citizens on his own.

A senior defense adviser at the Center for Strategic and International Studies said there is no chance of a draft in this war because the military, the public, and Congress all oppose it.

Most young men are already registered

Nearly all male U.S. citizens and male immigrants between 18 and 25 must register with the Selective Service System by federal law. Registration is not enlistment, and it does not mean anyone will be called to serve.

The USAGov page on Selective Service registration explains the process in full.

Failing to register is a federal felony that carries up to five years in prison or a fine of up to $250,000.

Women are not currently required to register, though a congressional commission recommended expanding that requirement in 2020.

A lottery would decide who gets called first

If Congress authorized a draft, the Selective Service would hold a publicly televised lottery based on birth dates. Men whose 20th birthday falls during the lottery year would be the first ones called.

Each year after that, a man moves into a lower priority group until he turns 26. Deferments would apply for certain hardships and conscientious objectors.

Passing the law, running the lottery, and training draftees would all take significant time, according to the Selective Service System’s official page on how a return to the draft would work.

Experts say a draft is very unlikely

The U.S. fought in Iraq and Afghanistan for years without a draft, even with large ground forces involved.

A PolitiFact analysis of Leavitt’s comments and the likelihood of a draft found that only about 23% of Americans aged 17 to 24 meet basic military eligibility standards without needing a waiver. Military leaders still prefer volunteers over draftees.

Draft fears have also spread misinformation online before, including during the Russia-Ukraine war, when fabricated AI-generated videos circulated widely.

Seven service members have died so far

At least seven American service members have been killed since Operation Epic Fury began on Feb. 28.

Six were Army Reserve soldiers killed March 1 when an Iranian drone struck a makeshift operations center at a civilian port in Kuwait.

The seventh died from injuries after an attack on U.S. troops in Saudi Arabia, also on March 1. About 140 service members have been wounded, the Pentagon said, with most sustaining minor injuries.

Eight remain severely hurt as of March 10.

The Iran war started fast and split opinion

The U.S. and Israel launched joint strikes on Iran beginning Feb. 28, 2026, in an operation the administration said was prompted by an imminent threat.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in the initial strikes, along with other senior officials.

Iran has since launched retaliatory strikes on U.S. military installations and civilian infrastructure across the Middle East. Trump has said he expects the conflict to last four to five weeks.

Most congressional Republicans support the operation, but some prominent conservatives oppose it.

The war is dividing both parties

Most Republicans in Congress have expressed general support for the military operation. But some conservatives see it as a break from Trump’s long-stated opposition to foreign wars.

Democrats in Congress are broadly opposed, with many calling the action unjustified. The draft question has pushed those divisions further by making the conflict feel more personal to American families.

Early polling suggests this war is more unpopular than past U.S. military engagements.

No draft bill exists, but the debate continues

The White House has not issued a statement definitively ruling out a draft. Congress has not introduced any legislation to authorize one.

The Selective Service System currently operates without a Senate-confirmed director, with Craig T. Brown serving as acting director.

Americans looking for official information can check the Selective Service System’s website at sss.gov.

The administration’s “all options on the table” approach has continued to fuel public concern.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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