--- title: "Top brass wants women to register for the draft" date: "2018-04-02" modified: "2020-10-21" authors: - name: "Blake Stilwell" job_title: "Editor-In-Chief, Air Force Veteran" link: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/authors/blake/" url: "https://www.wearethemighty.com/mighty-trending/us-army-marine-corps-top-brass-want-women-register-draft/" categories: - "Join the Military" - "Military News" - "Recruiting" --- # Top brass wants women to register for the draft ![]() Now that [women are cleared to join men in all U.S. military combat roles](), the service chiefs of the U.S. Army and U.S. Marine Corps think the rules for Selective Service registration should be changed to include women. --- ![]() *Gen. Robert Neller (U.S. Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Shawn Valosin)* Current selective service rules say all male citizens of the United States and male immigrants (and bizarrely, [illegal]() immigrants) have to register for the Selective Service System within 30 days of their 18th birthday. This is not joining the military but registering with the government to be available in a time where conscription would be necessary. Marine Corps Commandant Gen. Robert Neller and Army Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Milley [believe the provisions of Military Selective Service should reflect the new policies of the Department of Defense](). "Every American who's physically qualified should register for the draft," Neller told the Senate Armed Services Committee . ![]() *Gen. Mark Milley* The Supreme Court's 1981 decision in *Rostker v. Goldberg* upheld Congress' decision to exempt women from the draft, saying "training would be needlessly burdened by women recruits who could not be used in combat." In order for women to be drafted, Congress would have to update the provisions of the Selective Service Act of 1948. ![]() If you're an American male age 18 or older and forgot to register for Selective Service, [there's no time like the present](). ## Author Blake Stilwell is We Are The Mighty's Editor-in-Chief, covering military news, entertainment, and history, along with veteran education, employment and entrepreneurship. He is a former U.S. Air Force combat cameraman with degrees in Graphic Design, Television and Film, International Relations, Public Relations, Business Management and Middle Eastern Affairs. After leaving the military, he began working in film and television production in New York and Los Angeles, work that included ABC News, NBC Olympics, and HBO Sports. He then spent two years in Washington with White House Communications, before joining the Near East Foundation. At NEF he served as an International Development Fellow, then Communications Officer, and finally, Media Officer for the Middle East and Africa. Based in the Palestinian Territory, he coordinated strategic communications between eight country offices, international media, and government and NGO partners. He began a career focused on writing and editing in 2015 with We Are The Mighty. He left in 2019 for Military.com, but returned as Editor-in-Chief in 2025. Blake’s work has been seen on CBS News, Fox News, CBC, The Chicago Tribune, Task & Purpose, Military Times, Recoil, Skillset, American History, and was shockingly even used in a Supreme Court argument. He is an avid traveler and small business owner in Ohio, where he spends most of his energy fixing up a very old house. ### Author social links [Facebook]() [Twitter]() [Instagram]() [LinkedIn]()