Which other prominent 1960s–70s public figures received multiple draft deferments and what were their classifications?
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Executive summary
Multiple well‑known public figures from the 1960s–70s era obtained more than one Selective Service deferment, most commonly student and medical postponements, but the public record and contemporary reporting rarely record the exact Selective Service classification codes for each individual; reporting and scholarship instead describe types of deferments such as student, medical, occupational and religious/missionary [1] [2] [3]. This review names several frequently cited public figures, summarizes the kinds of deferments reported about them, and highlights what the available sources do — and do not — document about formal classifications.
1. How the system worked and the common deferments cited
The Cold War–era Selective Service used a set of classifications and routinely granted student deferments, medical deferments and occupational or dependency postponements; the undergraduate college deferment was one of the central features of the period and graduate deferments were narrowed by law in 1967 [1] [4], while draft boards also issued occupational (2‑C) and other job‑related deferments in large numbers [5] [3].
2. Politicians and public figures frequently named in reporting
Mainstream reporting and retrospective lists commonly identify Bill Clinton, Joe Biden, Dick Cheney and Donald Trump among prominent figures accused or reported to have received deferments in the Vietnam era, though sources differ on the details and sometimes use shorthand rather than citation of specific induction records [6]. Joe Biden is repeatedly described in popular accounts as having had multiple student deferments and later a medical deferment reportedly for childhood asthma [7]. Bill Clinton and Dick Cheney are widely discussed in the same breath in summaries of prominent draft‑age politicians [6], though the specific deferment types and codes are not enumerated in those snippets.
3. Religious and missionary deferments: the Romney example
Mitt Romney’s path is one of the better documented public narratives: after leaving Stanford and facing the loss of a student deferment he became a Mormon missionary and received a state missionary deferment, a religious‑status postponement reported in retrospective coverage [8]. Salon and other outlets have linked Romney’s missionary deferment directly to his church’s practices during the period [8].
4. Media lists, entertainers and controversies over physical/medical deferments
Popular compilations and longform lists name artists and entertainers — and controversial public figures — who obtained multiple deferments, sometimes citing medical or psychological grounds; for example, some sources recount Rudy Giuliani’s multiple deferments and note he was at one point listed as 1‑A yet reportedly received deferments [7]. These accounts often mix firsthand reporting, personal recollection and secondary lists and rarely link to original selective service classifications or board adjudications.
5. What the sources explicitly document — and what they do not
The supplied reporting and reference material document the prevalence of student, medical, occupational and religious deferments across the draft system [1] [5] [3] and name multiple public figures associated with deferments in aggregate accounts [6] [8] [7]. However, the available snippets do not provide comprehensive primary‑record citations that assign specific Selective Service classification codes (for example, 1‑A, 2‑C, 3‑A, etc.) to each named individual; therefore these sources can confirm the type of deferment often reported (student, medical, missionary) but not always the exact historical classification code for each person [1] [8] [7].
6. Context, incentives and class dynamics
Scholars and historical summaries emphasize that draft outcomes were strongly shaped by social and institutional factors — student deferments favored those in higher education and local boards' discretion produced unequal outcomes across socioeconomic lines — which helps explain why many prominent or well‑connected men were able to secure multiple postponements even as poorer men were more likely to be drafted [9] [4]. Reporting and lists sometimes reflect partisan or narrative agendas, so contemporaneous board records and selective service files are the authoritative sources when exact classifications are needed, but those are not fully reproduced in the sourced snippets above.
Conclusion
The publicly discussed roster of prominent 1960s–70s figures who received multiple deferments typically includes names such as Joe Biden, Bill Clinton, Dick Cheney, Donald Trump, Mitt Romney and others, and the deferments most often described are student, medical and religious/missionary postponements; available secondary sources document the types of postponements but do not consistently provide original Selective Service classification codes for each individual, so definitive classification assignments require consultation of primary draft‑board records [6] [8] [7] [1].