Presidents Behaving Goodly: Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter Pardon Draft Dodgers
On September 16, 1974, President Gerald Ford introduced a conditional amnesty program for Vietnam War draft dodgers. The announcement came just eight days after Ford had issued Proclamation 4311, which gave his predecessor Richard Nixon a full and unconditional pardon for any crimes he might have committed against the United States while President.
During the Vietnam War, the United States instituted a draft system to build up troop levels for the war. The large number of Baby Boomers who became eligible for military service during the Vietnam War resulted in a steep increase in the number of exemptions and deferments, especially for college and graduate students. 25% of troops deployed to the combat zone were draftees. Some draft eligible men publicly protested the draft by illegally burning their draft cards.As U.S. troop strength in Vietnam increased, more young men sought to avoid the draft. Some did so by enlisting in the Coast Guard. Vocations to the clergy increased because divinity students were exempt from the draft. 30,000 of the 210,000 Americans accused of dodging the draft left the country. A large number of these went to Canada. The Canadian government chose to welcome them, and draft evasion was not a criminal offense under Canadian law.
The issue of deserters was more complex. Desertion from the U.S. military was not on the list of crimes for which a person could be extradited under the extradition treaty between Canada and the U.S. Although the Canadian government had the right to prosecute these deserters, they rarely did so and instructed border guards not to ask questions relating to the issue. Tens of thousands of deserters were among those who found safe refuge in Canada, as well as in Sweden, France, and the United Kingdom.
In Canada, many American Vietnam War evaders received emigration counseling from locally based groups. The largest were the Montreal Committee to Aid War Objectors, the Toronto Anti-Draft Programme, and the Vancouver Committee to Aid American War Objectors. The Manual for Draft-Age Immigrants to Canada, published by the Toronto Anti-Draft Programme, sold nearly 100,000 copies.
Those who left the country to dodge the draft faced imprisonment or forced military service if they returned home. When the war ended, the U.S. continued to prosecute draft dodgers. But on September 16, 1974, President Gerald Ford offered an amnesty program for draft dodgers. The conditions of Ford's amnesty program required that those who qualified first reaffirm their allegiance to the United States. It also required them to serve between six months and two years working in a public service job or a total of 2 years service for those who had served less than 2 years of honorable service in the military.
In 1977, President Jimmy Carter fulfilled a campaign promise by offering pardons to anyone who had evaded the draft and requested one. On Carter's first day in office, January 20, 1977, he fulfilled a campaign promise by issuing an executive order declaring unconditional amnesty for Vietnam War draft evaders. The move didn't please everyone. It antagonized critics on the right who complained that those pardoned paid no penalty, while those on the left complained that requesting a pardon required the admission of a crime.
About half of those who had fled to Canada to avoid the draft remained.
During the Vietnam War, the United States instituted a draft system to build up troop levels for the war. The large number of Baby Boomers who became eligible for military service during the Vietnam War resulted in a steep increase in the number of exemptions and deferments, especially for college and graduate students. 25% of troops deployed to the combat zone were draftees. Some draft eligible men publicly protested the draft by illegally burning their draft cards.As U.S. troop strength in Vietnam increased, more young men sought to avoid the draft. Some did so by enlisting in the Coast Guard. Vocations to the clergy increased because divinity students were exempt from the draft. 30,000 of the 210,000 Americans accused of dodging the draft left the country. A large number of these went to Canada. The Canadian government chose to welcome them, and draft evasion was not a criminal offense under Canadian law.
The issue of deserters was more complex. Desertion from the U.S. military was not on the list of crimes for which a person could be extradited under the extradition treaty between Canada and the U.S. Although the Canadian government had the right to prosecute these deserters, they rarely did so and instructed border guards not to ask questions relating to the issue. Tens of thousands of deserters were among those who found safe refuge in Canada, as well as in Sweden, France, and the United Kingdom.
In Canada, many American Vietnam War evaders received emigration counseling from locally based groups. The largest were the Montreal Committee to Aid War Objectors, the Toronto Anti-Draft Programme, and the Vancouver Committee to Aid American War Objectors. The Manual for Draft-Age Immigrants to Canada, published by the Toronto Anti-Draft Programme, sold nearly 100,000 copies.
Those who left the country to dodge the draft faced imprisonment or forced military service if they returned home. When the war ended, the U.S. continued to prosecute draft dodgers. But on September 16, 1974, President Gerald Ford offered an amnesty program for draft dodgers. The conditions of Ford's amnesty program required that those who qualified first reaffirm their allegiance to the United States. It also required them to serve between six months and two years working in a public service job or a total of 2 years service for those who had served less than 2 years of honorable service in the military.
In 1977, President Jimmy Carter fulfilled a campaign promise by offering pardons to anyone who had evaded the draft and requested one. On Carter's first day in office, January 20, 1977, he fulfilled a campaign promise by issuing an executive order declaring unconditional amnesty for Vietnam War draft evaders. The move didn't please everyone. It antagonized critics on the right who complained that those pardoned paid no penalty, while those on the left complained that requesting a pardon required the admission of a crime.
About half of those who had fled to Canada to avoid the draft remained.