Various "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" Related News Articles.

Dan82 · May 28, 2010

http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-brief...tell-repeal-may-not-be-signed-until-years-end

Legislation containing a repeal of the law banning gays from the military might not be signed until the end of the year, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates said Friday.

In remarks to American troops broadcast on military media outlets, Gates spoke about the votes in Congress this week repealing the Clinton-era "Don't ask, don't tell policy" against openly gay service members.

"The legislative process is long and complex," he said. "While it appears likely that Congress will eventually change the 'Don't ask, don't tell' law, we do not expect that the legislation to do this would be presented to the president for months, perhaps not until the end of the year."

This week, the House of Representatives approved an amendment Thursday to the 2011 defense authorization bill that repeals the policy, pending the completion of the Pentagon's year-long review on the impact of repeal.

The Senate Armed Services Committee also passed an amendment this week getting rid of the policy.

Supporters of the repeal reached an agreement with the White House this week to allow a vote on language authorizing a repeal that would only be implemented after the Pentagon concludes its review of the policy...
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Dan82 · May 28, 2010

Kagan's Stance on DADT at Harvard Ambiguous

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/05/28/politics/washingtonpost/main6527938.shtml

Elena Kagan picked up her phone just before Christmas 2004 and, in an uncharacteristic moment as Harvard Law School dean, dialed the home number of a third-year student. She asked him, a leader of a tiny club of military veterans, to come by her office, where she broached the touchy matter of military recruiting on campus and made a surprising request.

Because the law school had just stopped sponsoring recruiters from the armed services, Kagan said, she hoped the veterans club would arrange recruiting interviews to fill the gap. But the request was more than the few veterans on campus would embrace. After an intense debate, the Harvard Law School Veterans Association turned her down, according to three people who were in the room, deciding that -- as one put it -- "we are basically students, not recruiters."

The little-known episode illustrates that, at the time when the issue was most feverish, Kagan was pursuing two courses at once: While staking out a tough stance against the recruiting, because of the military's ban on gay men and lesbians serving openly, she simultaneously maneuvered to facilitate it behind the scenes. Those watching her up close were divided over whether she was hedging on hard choices or simply trying not to antagonize rival campus factions.

Now that President Obama has nominated Kagan to the Supreme Court, her attitudes about the military while dean have emerged as a prominent issue, which her conservative critics are wielding to try to thwart her confirmation. But her interactions with the small cadre of Harvard law students affiliated with the military suggest that the talking points of Kagan's Republican critics and her Democratic defenders distort history to some degree...
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Dan82 · May 30, 2010

'They should not have done this,' Dem says of DADT fast track

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.co...dem-says-of-dadt-fast-track/?fbid=hluqC4_OPwE

A leading Democratic voice on military affairs has criticized members of his own party for the hurried way in which congressional Democrats and the White House are pushing through the repeal of the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy.

President Obama, Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Adm. Mike Mullen, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, have all stated their belief that the policy should be changed. In an effort to lay the groundwork to do away with “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” Gates and Mullen have commissioned a thorough survey of U.S. service members in order to ascertain how the force structure feels as a whole about having openly gay and lesbian members serving within their midst.

The results of the review will not be available until December but in an apparent acknowledgement that they may not have sufficient votes to support a repeal after this November’s midterms, the White House and Democrats on Capitol Hill moved forward last week with efforts to pass a law that would repeal the policy. The House approved the provision as part of a larger defense spending bill and the Senate Armed Services Committee also approved the measure. The legislation, if passed, would not take effect until the military’s internal review is completed; it also requires the president, Gates, and Mullen to sign off on the policy change...
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Dan82 · May 30, 2010

Various "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" News Articles

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/44/2010/05/powell-things-have-changed-on.html

Gen. Colin Powell, once one of the architects of the military's "don't ask, don't tell" law, said this morning that he is personally in favor of repealing the policy.

"Things have changed. That was 17 years ago," Powell said when asked about his past support for the ban during an appearance on ABC's "This Week." Powell said that he is "personally of the view now that attitudes have changed," adding that it's "perfectly acceptable" to repeal the law so long as the voices of the men and women in charge of executing the policy are heard in the process.

As chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Powell was opposed to President Clinton's 1993 effort to end the military's ban on gay men and lesbians serving openly in the military, testifying before Congress that it would negatively affect the "cohesion and well-being" of the force.

Powell first issued a statement announcing his support for repealing the law in February, following the testimony of the current Joint Chiefs Chairman, Adm. Mike Mullen, to the Senate Armed Services Committee that repealing the law would be the "right thing to do."

In an appearance on "Fox News Sunday" this morning, Mullen reiterated his belief that the law should be changed, but he questioned the timing of this week's votes by the full House and the Senate Armed Services Committee to repeal the law...
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settlingsound · May 30, 2010

Re: Powell: "Things Have Changed" on "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"

Wow one more step towards equality =)

ANightDude · May 30, 2010

Re: Powell: "Things Have Changed" on "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"

I always liked that man.

Dan82 · Jun 1, 2010

News Analysis: Four Days That Shook DADT

http://metroweekly.com/news/?ak=5262

In the 96 hours between Monday morning, May 24, and Thursday evening, May 27, America may have seen the most deft legislative accomplishment of the Obama administration thus far.

It began Monday morning, when the White House first got the senior leaders of the Pentagon and the advocacy organizations seeking to end the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy to make significant compromises about the end of the policy. Second, the White House helped move congressional leaders in both chambers to consent to compromise language and introduce the resulting legislation.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates made clear repeatedly to House Armed Services Committee Chairman Rep. Ike Skelton (D-Mo.) – an opponent of repeal – that he did not yet want to see any legislative action clearing the way for DADT repeal. Instead, Gates has stated that he prefers the Pentagon working group he appointed to examine repeal implementation finish its study, which is not due till Dec. 1. LGBT organizations, on the other hand, have repeatedly made clear to the White House and others that legislative repeal of DADT is imperative before the end of the year – more specifically, before November’s midterm elections that may result in a Congress more hostile to DADT repeal and other LGBT civil-rights issues.

In order to accommodate both camps, both entered a gray area that allowed the repeal process to take one – and just one -- large step forward. Officials at the Center for American Progress have taken credit for having devised some of the crux of the compromise.

So, what was the compromise – reached among people who, while not necessarily agreeing on methodology, have all publicly committed to supporting the end of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” – and why did it happen?

Gates and Adm. Mike Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, gave up on delaying a vote until after the Pentagon study but maintained control of the timeline. That is the piece they won: The amendment requires them – along with the president – to certify that the Pentagon’s DADT report has been reviewed, that regulation changes are ready and that unit cohesion and recruitment standards will continue to be met after repeal is implemented, if the repeal process is to get its next pivotal green light...
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Dan82 · Jun 1, 2010

McCain: Studies needed on 'don't ask, don't tell'

http://ktar.com/?nid=6&sid=1300117

Arizona Sen. John McCain says the White House needs to slow down in its push to do away with the ban on gays serving openly in the military.

The House voted last week to repeal the "don't ask, don't tell" policy and the bill is now headed to the Senate.

"I want the people to know that we needed a complete study as to the effect on the impact of our battle effectiveness and morale before we repealed it," McCain told News/Talk 92.3 KTAR. "They're ramming it through without the input even of the chiefs of our services...
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Connor22 · Jun 1, 2010

Re: McCain: Studies needed on 'don't ask, don't tell'

what impact? so some people get to say I'm gay in the army, how exactly does that affect soldiers fighting ability or morale?

Dan82 · Jun 1, 2010

IL GOP Senate Candidate Mark Kirk is Gay and a Hypocrite, Says 'Outrage' Blogger

http://www.towleroad.com/2010/06/mi...is-role-in-outing-closeted-hypocritical.html?

Mike Rogers, the blogger behind Blogactive who was featured prominently in the Kirby Dick documentary 'Outrage' for his role in outing closeted hypocritical politicians, has found a new target, Illinois Republican congressman Mark Kirk, whose "no" vote on the recent "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" repeal compromise is one hypocritical step too many in the wrong direction.

It's not as if Kirk's sexuality has not been discussed up to this point. Kirk is running against Democrat Alexi Giannoulias in the Illinois senate race for Barack Obama's old seat. In the Republican primary in December, Kirk was the target of a radio ad from his primary opponent Andy Martin which alleged that he had a "solid rumor" that Kirk is gay.

Responding to that ad, Kirk publicly denied he is gay in early January — video HERE.

Rogers digs a bit deeper and brings out a few additional items, saying that Kirk basically outed himself to Rogers at a party, expressing interest in another gentleman who was there:

Within hours of the DADT repeal vote I was contacted by two people who knew Kirk from his college days.

"In law school in DC everyone knew Mark was gay," the first source told me. I explained that the information was intriguing, it would not be enough to go on. He continued, "But I had sex with him a number of times." Well, now we're onto something I thought. "Could someone verify for me that you knew Kirk and went to school with him?" I asked. "Yes" was the swift reply. "Could you recall personal details about Kirk that others may not know?" "Yes," he said.

And he did.

The next source claimed to have gone to undergraduate school with Kirk. I asked for proof that he and Kirk were in school together and once that was shared with me, I met with the source. The source introduced me to a man whom had also been friends with Kirk college. They both shared with me their interactions with Kirk, including one sexual in nature. The source who claimed to have sex with Kirk described personal details about the House, um, er, "member." The description was the same as the first source.

And in DC, Kirk wasn't all THAT closeted. You see Mark Kirk told me he was gay. Before I had BlogActive, I had a life in Washington. As a fundraiser I raised major gifts from $5,000 to over $1,000,000... You don't do that kind of work at a keyboard, you do it at events with attended by people with money. The movers and shakers and their friends.

It was early 2004 when I was at a social gathering on Capitol Hill. I'm guessing there were 35-40 people present, including the guy who brought me as his guest. While the party was no means a "gay" party, I'd guess that of the men at least 75% were overtly gay. The others present were either straight men or their women friends.

It was at that party that I met Mark Kirk. I was introduced to him by the person I came with and at the time did not realize he was a member of the House. As my friend walked away, Kirk asked me if the man who introduced us was "single or attached." When I said that he had a partner Kirk replied disappointingly, "oh, well." At the end of that interaction I walked away and didn't think much of it at the time.
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Revan · Jun 1, 2010

Re: McCain: Studies needed on 'don't ask, don't tell'

Exactly. How does it make it different seriously >_> How is it ANY difference from where they are now? All they're saying is I'm gay, but they're still the same people, just like when people come out to family and friends >_> WHY is it two words can do this?

Emberstone · Jun 1, 2010

Re: McCain: Studies needed on 'don't ask, don't tell'

McCain is merely trying to keep in the good graces of the far right lunatic fringe. When he went to the far right extremes during the 2008 elections, it seems it was for good.

with over 3/4th of the country wanted DADT repealed, which means most republicans, it is only the far right anti goverment, anti equality groups like the tea partiers, the john birch society, and freedom works, that support the DADT policy, in essence.

A republican strategist *you can read the comments in full on the advocate* spoke out against republicans rallying against DADT's repeal, saying that it is counter to the countries wishes, and only hurts republicans further.

Dan82 · Jun 1, 2010

'Don't ask' deal's unlikely activist

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0510/37950.html

Aubrey Sarvis was a drawling young enlisted man in 1964, back at Fort Lee, Va., from a tour in Korea, when he heard the buzz on the chow line about a “queer investigation” involving four soldiers who had attended “some kind of gay party” off base. When he returned to his barracks, he recalls, “their bunks were gone, and every stitch of their personal effects were gone, and they had been sent to an isolated place on the base.”

Sarvis didn’t think of himself as gay at the time. And he didn’t think about the incident again for years, until his former boss, South Carolina Sen. Fritz Hollings received a visit from Gen. Colin Powell, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who asked him to vote for a compromise to extend the gay ban. Hollings voted to retain the ban under the rubric “don’t ask, don’t tell,” and Sarvis who had worked for Hollings a decade earlier as a reticent, soldierly chief of staff for the Senate Commerce Committee, didn’t tell Hollings he thought he was wrong.

Now Sarvis, executive director of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, is among the most visible spokesmen for the gay rights movement at what appears to be a moment of triumph. The passage last week of an amendment that would allow military leaders to repeal the gay ban — a move expected sometime next year — is a victory for a restive gay rights movement that, after a heady series of victories in state legislatures, appeared to be losing ground on the central issue of marriage. President Barack Obama opposes same-sex marriage, and voters in Democrat-leaning Maine rejected it last fall.

Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0510/37950.html#ixzz0pdQEhpJF
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Phoenix · Jun 1, 2010

Re: IL GOP Senate Candidate Mark Kirk is Gay and a Hypocrite, Says 'Outrage' Blogger

Eh what else is new. But I really don't think an angry or hateful reaction to these types of people are appropriate. If he's in denial, then I feel bad for him. If he's accepted it and chooses to remain closeted, well that's his business. It reminds me of when Rachel Maddow was talking about George Rekers and said that once you try to make life difficult for other people your business is no longer personal (I'm paraphrasing of course), but still. He's doing what he has to to make a living in the career he's chosen. My view may be unpopular, but that's what it is.

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