In December, the Department of Defense revealed that it had missed its collective recruitment goals for the armed forces by 41,000; among the separate military branches, only the Navy and Space Force met their individual goals.

Given that, according to FiveThirtyEight, President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump are running nearly dead even in their respective bids for a second term, either man is as likely as the other to be called upon to address that shortfall.

One former Trump Cabinet secretary is pushing national mandatory military service. If elected, Trump would do well to reject the idea.

Christopher Miller served as Trump's acting Secretary of Defense for roughly two months, between the 2020 election and Biden's inauguration. In a December 2023 interview with Hugh Hewitt about Cabinet appointments in his potential second term, Trump said that Miller "did a very good job" and could potentially be reappointed.

Miller told The Washington Post that a national mandate on military service should be "strongly considered," adding, "Why wouldn't we give that a try?"