Wednesday February 3, 2010
Defense Secretary Gates to Phase Out Ban on Openly Gay Military
By Kathleen Gilbert
WASHINGTON, DC, February 3, 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Two top military officials confirmed to Congress yesterday that the U.S. military would heed President Obama’s urging in his State of the Union address, and begin evaluating how to phase out enforcement of the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy banning open homosexuals from serving in the military.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates said in a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing that, “The question before us is not whether the military prepares to make this change, but how we best prepare for it.”
“We received our orders from the commander in chief, and we are moving out accordingly,” said Gates.
Admiral Mike Mullen indicated that the repeal could cause disruption at a time when the military is involved in two wars, but called it “the right thing to do.” Mullen suggested that, while the Pentagon studied the policy change, “Congress can act at the same time on a legislative repeal this year.”
The officers said the Pentagon’s review of how repealing the policy would impact unit morale and cohesion would take approximately one year.
Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), ranking member of the Senate Armed Services Committee and retired Navy captain, said he was “deeply disappointed” with the proceedings against the policy. McCain also took issue with Gates’ statement that the Pentagon would study how, not whether, the repeal would be implemented.
“Your statement obviously is one which is clearly biased, without the view of Congress being taken into consideration,” said the senator. The repeal is also under fire from Former Marine Commandant Gen. Carl E. Mundy and 1,160 retired admirals and generals petitioning against it.
Gay rights leaders hailed Tuesday’s step toward repealing the ban, and praised President Obama’s leadership on the issue.
“We acknowledge and appreciate President Obama’s leadership in bringing the military into line with his ideal,” said Human Rights Campaign president Joe Solmonese. “Make no mistake – this would not have happened without his insistence. And we’ll need more of that commitment in the months ahead.”
Many individuals associated with the military, however, say that repealing the ban amounts to sacrificing U.S. military readiness for the homosexual political agenda.
“Activists claim the risk of crimes from same-sex offenders is no greater than it is between servicemen and women. They are wrong,” wrote Richard Black, a former chief of the U.S. Army’s Criminal Law Division. In a Washington Times op-ed this week, Black criticized the Clinton administration’s “campaign to portray gay GIs as ‘perfect gentlemen – a boon to the force.'”
“At the Criminal Law Division, facts contradicted that party line,” said Black. “Worldwide criminal reports documented serious offenses being committed frequently by homosexual GIs. To be certain, homosexuals weren’t the only soldiers committing crimes, but the administration’s proposals would have placed homosexuals in situations of forced intimacy, where same-sex attractions invite serious trouble.”
An anonymous defense official told the Times that military men are discontent with the possibility of an imminent policy change.
“It was a difficult year and even more difficult to balance out a number of issues, including the wars and gay rights,” said the official. “This will be a historical change, and not everyone is happy with it.”
See related LifeSiteNews.com coverage:
Congress Takes Aim at “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”
https://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2010/feb/10020111.html