White House eyes a compromise on gays in military

[Redress]

White House eyes a compromise on gays in military - Yahoo! News

AP-5:30 pm EST
A proposal to step up the repeal of the ban on gays and lesbians serving openly in the military but still allow the Pentagon time — perhaps even years — to implement new policies was being discussed Monday by administration officials and gay rights activists.

The White House had hoped lawmakers would delay action until Pentagon officials had completed their study so fellow Democrats would not face criticism that they moved too quickly or too far ahead of public opinion in this election year. Instead, administration officials now expect Congress to move ahead this week even though advocates on both sides say it's not clear there are enough votes to lift the 1993 ban.

Under the proposal emerging from talks at the White House, Congress would remove the Clinton-era "don't ask, don't tell" law even as the Pentagon continues an ongoing review of the system. Implementation of policy for gays serving openly would still require the approval of President Barack Obama, Defense Secretary Robert Gates and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Adm. Mike Mullen. How long implementation might take was not known.

We have not had a gays in the military thread in, gosh, days. I am going to surprise some people and say that I think this compromise is a mistake. Give the Pentagon the year to complete their study. I think gays being able to serve openly is the right thing to do, and I think it is inevitable and overdue. However, the decision was made to have the Pentagon do the study, so let them get it done first.

 

[danarhea]

I am surprised that there are no replies to this yet, so I am going to make one.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff are for repeal, so I think they know something that the talking heads on the news channels don't.

Personally, I am also for repeal. The blood of a gay man spills for this nation, just as the blood of any other man does. To gays in the military - Thank you for your service.

 

[Deuce]

CNN Political Ticker: All politics, all the time Blog Archive - CNN Poll: Nearly 8 in 10 favor gays in the military - Blogs from CNN.com

78% favor repeal. If a representative 78% of congress voted for it, it would be veto proof. You can amend the constitution with that kind of majority.

 

[danarhea]

CNN Political Ticker: All politics, all the time Blog Archive - CNN Poll: Nearly 8 in 10 favor gays in the military - Blogs from CNN.com

78% favor repeal. If a representative 78% of congress voted for it, it would be veto proof. You can amend the constitution with that kind of majority.

Except you don't need to amend the constitution here. DADT was tacked on to a military appropriations bill. That is all that needs to be repealed. Majority vote in congress.

 

[Deuce]

Except you don't need to amend the constitution here. DADT was tacked on to a military appropriations bill. That is all that needs to be repealed. Majority vote in congress.

Yes, I was just making the point that from a voter perspective we have a super-duper-ultramajority in favor of repeal.

 

[rathi]

Political gutlessness at its most obnoxious. There is no need for either "studies" or an "implementation period". The only that needs to change is that soldiers won't find themselves facing court-martial based on gender preference. There are many gay soldiers already serving today, and other than not having to live in closet, its business as usual. The democrats once again prove that even control of congress and presidency is no replacement for actually having a spine.

 

[Jetboogieman]

But if you allow gays to openly serve in the military... then that will make every man and woman in the military gay too, they would be turned gay just like the one ring turned Smeagol into Gollum, forming into an inneffective panzy force that wouldn't wanna get their shiny black boots from Gucci dirty...

 

[Deuce]

But if you allow gays to openly serve in the military... then that will make every man and woman in the military gay too, they would be turned gay just like the one ring turned Smeagol into Gollum, forming into an inneffective panzy force that wouldn't wanna get their shiny black boots from Gucci dirty...

Gollum did bite a dude's finger off so we wouldn't be totally weak.