Gay sailor found dead on military base in a suspected homicide.
Gay sailor found dead on military base in a suspected homicide.
Yesterday, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported that the body of openly gay Seaman August Provost was discovered in a guard shack at Camp Pendelton. A “person of interest” in connection to the suspected homicide is now being held in the Navy brig at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar. According to Provost’s sister, he had recently complained to his family that “someone was harassing and bothering him.” According to the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, Provost likely didn’t report the harassment because of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell”:
The Navy would not comment on whether Provost’s orientation had anything to do with the death.
“While ‘Don’t ask, Don’t tell’ is in place, anybody in the military who is a homosexual has no place to go to get assistance or counseling,” said Ben Gomez of Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, an advocacy group for gays in the military.
(HT: Raw Story)
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Obama Cites ‘Generational Gap’ As Explanation For Difficulty In Repealing DADT
Obama Cites ‘Generational Gap’ As Explanation For Difficulty In Repealing DADT
On MSNBC last month, Lt. Col. Victor Fehrenbach, a decorated U.S. Air Force fighter pilot who served in both the Iraq and Afghanistan theaters, said he was told last year that he was being discharged under the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy, but planned to fight it, hoping that President Obama would quickly change the policy once he assumed office.
Yesterday, the president hosted a meeting commemorating the 40th anniversary of the gay rights movement where he reiterated his desire to end the policy, saying it “doesn’t contribute to our national security.” Appearing again on MSNBC last night, Fehrenbach, who attended the White House meeting yesterday, said that Obama told him privately that a “generational gap” is the biggest obstacle standing in the way of overturning DADT:
FEHRENBACH: I told him the situation for me was urgent and I needed his help. [...] He looked me right in the eye and he said, “We’re going to get this done.” And then he continued to say, you know, everyone seems to be onboard. We’ve got about 75 percent of the public that supports this. He said, but we have a generational issue. And so, there is some convincing to do, that there is a generational gap it seems and some of the senior leadership.
Fehrenbach called it a “reasonable answer,” adding that “the young officers and the young enlisted corps” he works with find this to be a “a non-issue.” “I sort of suspected that maybe the people that were a little bit disconnected were some of the senior leadership,” he said. Watch it:
Fehrenbach said that he “didn’t get the impression” that Obama was just trying to placate the gay community by offering a photo-op with the president for not acting on gay rights issues thus far. “He likened these efforts to the efforts 40, 50 years ago for the African-American community,” he said. “So…this discrimination is something he’s felt his whole life. So, this sounded like it was a personal issue for him, that he really did believe in these causes and wanted, you know, equal rights for all Americans.”
White House Rejects CAP’s Recommendations To Suspend DADT Through Executive Order
White House Rejects CAP’s Recommendations To Suspend DADT Through Executive Order
Yesterday, the Center for American Progress released a report detailing a clear, realistic, and comprehensive road map for repealing “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” the discriminatory ban on gay men and women serving openly in the military. The steps include:
1. Signing an Executive Order banning further military separations based on DADT and sending a legislative proposal on DADT repeal to Congress
2. Forming a presidential panel on how to implement the repeal
3. Repealing DADT in Congress and changing the Uniformed Code of Military Justice, or UCMS
4. Changing other necessary military guidelines to conform to the new policy
5. Following-up to ensure that the armed forces implement the policy changes
In today’s press briefing, David Corn of Mother Jones asked White House spokesman Robert Gibbs about the report and whether the Obama administration thinks this is “the way to go.” Gibbs largely dismissed CAP’s recommendations, saying that the White House is not interested in signing an executive order to temporarily halt DADT:
GIBBS: Well, the President has had meetings about this, has talked with members of Congress. His staff has talked with members of Congress. All of them have talked to Pentagon officials and the administration believes that this requires a durable, legislative solution, and is pursing that in Congress.
Q: I understand that for the long-term solution, but what do you take issue with about signing an executive order that will suspend the separations before an endurable solution is reached through the slow legislative process?
GIBBS: I mean, I think there could be differences on strategy. I think our belief is that the only and best way to do this is through a durable, comprehensive legislative process.
Watch it:
ThinkProgress spoke with CAP Senior Fellow Lawrence Korb, one of the authors of the report, who reiterated that it’s essential for Obama to suspend the dismissals of gay men and women while working on a long-term solution with Congress:
We agree on the need for a durable legislative solution. But a presidential suspension on further dismissals on the basis of DADT is not only within the authority of the president but is necessary to begin the process of repealing this counterproductive, costly, and unnecessary law.
Read the full report here.
Transcript: More »
OMB advises veto of defense authorization if it contains F-22 funding.
OMB advises veto of defense authorization if it contains F-22 funding.
Last week, the House Armed Services Committee reinstated funding for the F-22, over the objections of the Pentagon and the White House, by eliminating funding for nuclear waste cleanup. (Rep. Barney Frank [D-MA] has introduced an amendment eliminating the money for the F-22.) Today, the Office of Management and Budget issued a Statement of Administrative Policy recommending a veto if the bill contains the F-22 funding:
F-22 Advance Procurement: The Administration strongly objects to the provisions in the bill authorizing $369 million in advanced procurement funds for F-22s in FY 2011. The collective judgment of the Service Chiefs and Secretaries of the military departments suggests that a final program of record of 187 F-22s is sufficient to meet operational requirements. If the final bill presented to the President contains this provision, the President’s senior advisors would recommend a veto.
This afternoon on MSNBC, VoteVets Chairman Jon Soltz debated Rep. Phil Gingrey (R-GA), who proclaimed, “We absolutely need 381 of these planes, and not 187.” Soltz called the claim “ridiculous,” and argued that military funds should be spent on troops on the ground:
It’s about how we spend our money. The Congressman cares about the Lockheed Martin stock price, and I care about the men and women who fight on the ground. And this weapon system does nothing for us.
Watch it:
Barney Frank: GOP Thinks $2 Billion F-22 Project Is Funded By Monopoly Money
Barney Frank: GOP Thinks $2 Billion F-22 Project Is Funded By Monopoly Money
Last week, over the objections of Defense Secretary Robert Gates and the Obama administration, the House Armed Services Committee restored funding for the basically useless F-22 fighter jet, in the process stripping funding for nuclear waste cleanup efforts. Last night, Rep. Barney Frank (D-MA) filed an amendment to restore the waste cleanup funds and eliminate the money for the F-22. The move came after months of Republicans issuing dire warnings about the consequences of suspending the F-22 program: Frank Gaffney, for example, declared it would lead to “diminished military capability, emboldening enemies, and alienating our friends.”
On a press call hosted by the Center for American Progress Action Fund this afternoon, Frank pointed out Republicans’ hypocrisy in railing against the deficit while simultaneously funding a $2 billion air force jet that has never once flown a mission in Afghanistan or Iraq. Frank said so-called deficit hawks act as though the Pentagon is funded with “Monopoly money”:
I am of course struck that so many of my colleagues who are so worried about the deficit apparently think the Pentagon is funded with Monopoly money that somehow doesn’t count.
Frank also dismissed concerns that eliminating the F-22 will cost jobs:
These arguments will come from the very people who denied that the economic recovery plan created any jobs. We have a very odd economic philosophy in Washington: It’s called weaponized Keynesianism. It is the view that the government does not create jobs when it funds the building of bridges or important research or retrains workers, but when it builds airplanes that are never going to be used in combat, that is of course economic salvation.
Listen to it:
Indeed, conservatives declare that canceling the F-22 would result in thousands of lost jobs. However, as Center for American Progress Senior Fellow Lawrence Korb pointed out on the call, the administration has also ramped up production of the F-35, which is produced at many of the same facilities — and by the same workers — as the F-22.
Frank called the F-22 fight an important “test” for the Obama administration’s efforts to cut wasteful military spending. “If we cannot hold the line on this, then it’s very bad news for trying to hold down any kind of excesses in military spending,” he said.
Six Democrats join GOP in overturning Obama administration’s efforts to cut F-22 funding.
Six Democrats join GOP in overturning Obama administration’s efforts to cut F-22 funding.
Last April, Defense Secretary Robert Gates recommended capping production of the F-22 Raptor at 187 planes. Gates said the move was part of a series of changes in defense spending that he called “no-brainers.” (The F-22 has never seen action in either Iraq or Afghanistan.) Yesterday, the House Armed Services Committee “threw a wrench in the Obama administration’s plans to end” the F-22 program, voting 31-30 on a measure marking up the Defense Department spending bill that would “add $369 million in extra funding to keep production of the Air Force’s most advanced jet alive.” Six Democrats — Reps. Jim Marshall (GA), Joe Courtney (CT), Gabrielle Giffords (AZ), Eric Massa (NY), Bobby Bright (AL), and Mike McIntyre (NC) — joined 25 Republicans in voting for the amendment. The Wall Street Journal reports that “the extra money would be a boost for Lockheed [Martin's] Marietta, Ga., production facility” which is in Marshall’s home state.
Reid Clarifies His Position On DADT: ‘We Would Welcome A Legislative Proposal From The White House’
Reid Clarifies His Position On DADT: ‘We Would Welcome A Legislative Proposal From The White House’
During a press conference yesterday, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) attracted attention when a reporter asked him whether the Senate will be pushing for a bill to repeal “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT):
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid speaking at a press conference Monday said he has no plans to introduce a bill to repeal “don’t ask, don’t tell” in the Senate.
“I haven’t identified any sponsors,” he said. “My hope is that it can be done administratively.“
The Obama administration has repeatedly resisted calls to suspend DADT by executive order. White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs last month said that President Obama is looking for a “durable legislative solution,” and Obama himself has written that repeal of the policy “needs Congressional action.”
Many LGBT bloggers immediately criticized Reid’s comments, saying that Obama and Congress were “playing hot potato over DADT.”
Today in a statement to ThinkProgress, Reid’s office clarified the senator’s remarks, saying that what he is looking for is a “legislative proposal” from the White House. Additionally, while the Senate does not currently have a bill introduced, “a number” of senators are working on one:
While we do not have a Don’t Ask Don’t Tell bill introduced in the Senate yet, a number of Senators are working on an approach to get it repealed. We would welcome a legislative proposal from the White House on repeal so as to provide clear guidance on what the President would like to see and when. Working together, I believe we can find the time to get repeal done in this Congress.
One of the major obstacles to introducing a bill in the Senate has been finding a willing Republican co-sponsor. The House already has a bill to repeal DADT. “If the House moves on this,” said Reid, “I would be happy to take it up.”
Supreme Court turns away constitutional challenge to Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.
Supreme Court turns away constitutional challenge to Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.
The Supreme Court announced today that it would not hear a constitutional challenge to the government’s Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy, which bans gays from serving openly in the military. The case, Pietrangelo v. Gates, “stemmed from a lawsuit by 12 former service members who were discharged” under Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. A “federal appeals court in Boston threw out the suit,” but James E. Pietrangelo II, one of the 12 who filed the suit, “asked the Supreme Court to hear arguments in the case. Most of the rest of the group joined a brief asking the justices to defer reviewing the policy while the administration and lawmakers revisit it.” Reacting to the decision, Joe Sudbay at AmericaBlog writes, “It’s time for Obama to step up.” Yglesias adds, “if you’re upset about the status quo, don’t just get upset at the White House, get upset at your House member and your Senators too. Given an adequate volume of complaining, people will do the right thing here, but it’s obvious that there’s a kind of vague preference to just let this slide.”
Colbert Report visits Iraq.
Colbert Report visits Iraq.
The U.S. Army confirms that Stephen Colbert, host of Comedy Central’s “The Colbert Report,” has arrived in Iraq to tape a week of shows. Colbert’s trip is dubbed “Operation Iraqi Stephen: Going Commando.” The visit was organized by United Service Organisations (USO), which arranges entertainment and support for American troops overseas. “The USO counts this as military service, right?” Colbert said in a press release. “I might want to run for office some day.”
McHugh on DADT: I have no interest in excluding people ‘otherwise qualified to serve.’
McHugh on DADT: I have no interest in excluding people ‘otherwise qualified to serve.’
After President Obama named Rep. John McHugh (R-NY) as his nominee for Secretary of the Army, progressives have been working to better understand McHugh’s current position on “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” the ban on gays serving openly in the military. While McHugh still intends to refrain from publicizing his own personal view on the issue until his confirmation hearings, yesterday in an interview with Roll Call, he hinted that he believes it’s time to repeal the ban:
“I have no interest as either a Member of Congress or as … secretary of the Army to exclude by some categorization a group of people otherwise qualified to serve,” McHugh told Roll Call.
He noted that the Armed Services Committee has not considered the policy “in any formal way” since 1993. In the meantime, “certainly, the recruiting-age population’s views have changed on that whole matter,” he said.
Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said on Tuesday that McHugh shared Obama’s commitment to repealing the ban.
Gibbs: McHugh and Obama ‘both don’t think [DADT] is working for this country right now.’
Gibbs: McHugh and Obama ‘both don’t think [DADT] is working for this country right now.’
Today, President Obama named Rep. John McHugh (R-NY) as his nominee to be Secretary of the Army. Though neither Obama nor McHugh discussed the military’s Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy today, Press Secretary Robert Gibbs today said McHugh shares Obama’s commitment to repealing the ban, which isn’t “working for this country right now”:
It’s obvious from those statements and other statements that Congressman McHugh has made that he and the president are in agreement on changing the policy they both don’t think is working for this country right now. And it’s a priority of the president’s.
It’s not clear to which statements Gibbs is referring. McHugh has kept his personal views on the issue rather quiet, though he criticized the military and the Defense Department for refusing to testify on the issue. Watch it:
Where Does The New Army Secretary Stand On Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell?
Where Does The New Army Secretary Stand On Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell?
Today, President Obama named Rep. John McHugh (R-NY) his Secretary of the Army. McHugh is the ranking member on the House Armed Services Committee, and represents a district that includes the Ft. Drum Army Base. He “brings patriotism and a pragmatism that has won him respect on both sides of the aisle,” Obama said of McHugh.
Notably, neither Obama nor McHugh mentioned the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT) policy, an issue McHugh will surely have to address. His congressional record provides few clues as to his position. McHugh has not signed on to co-sponsor to a House bill that would repeal the ban on gays serving in the military, and last year earned only a 15 percent rating from the Human Rights Campaign.
However, in opening and closing remarks during a hearing last year on the DADT, McHugh seemed open to changing the ban on gay servicemembers, asking for further hearings on the issue and chastising the military for having “refused to step forward” and testify on the matter:
[O]ur challenge is to examine and determine whether that conclusion of 1993 remains valid here in 2008. … I share the Chairlady’s disappointment that thus far the services have refused to step forward. I don’t see as an individual member how I fully and fairly consider this question and more importantly the issue of changing this question without the input of those in the active military who have the heavy responsibility of commanding our forces in time of war. [...]
Again, to underscore my opening comments about my disappointment in the military services because we have to at some point I would assume, come to a decision as to whose opinion prevails…And with all due deference, and respect, and appreciation to this panel and the five individuals who have appeared here, that kind of weighty decisions from my perspective ought to be based on a much broader foundation of input.
During the hearing, McHugh studiously avoided revealing his own views about the military’s discriminatory policies. With the Obama administration moving slowly on repealing the ban, it remains to be seen whether McHugh can help nudge the Army toward taking that “step forward” toward greater equality.
Congressman John McHugh (R-NY) is ranking Member of the House Armed Services Committee and has a substantial record of taking care of our troops and ensuring a good quality of life for their families. McHugh has the skills to be a very effective secretary of the Army and open new doors for all Americans who want to serve their country.
Gen. Ricardo Sanchez calls for war crimes truth commission.
Gen. Ricardo Sanchez calls for war crimes truth commission.
Sitting on a panel moderated by Rachel Maddow last night, retired Army Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez, the top U.S. commander in Iraq from 2003-2004, called for a truth commission to investigate Bush-era interrogation and torture tactics. The Huffington Post’s Jack Hidary reports:
The General described the failures at all levels of civilian and military command that led to the abuses in Iraq, “and that is why I support the formation of a truth commission.”
The General went on to say that, “during my time in Iraq there was not one instance of actionable intelligence that came out of these interrogation techniques.”
I interviewed General Sanchez after the event and asked him to elaborate on why he felt the US needed such a commission. … “If we do not find out what happened,” continued the General, “then we are doomed to repeat it.”
Sanchez described the interrogation program as “a personal failure on the part of many.” Indeed, Sanchez himself wrote and signed a 2003 memo that included specific interrogation tactics approved for use despite noting that they may violate the Geneva Conventions. In testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Sanchez denied signing off on these interrogation methods.
Decorated fighter pilot fought DADT discharge hoping Obama would end the policy.
Decorated fighter pilot fought DADT discharge hoping Obama would end the policy.
Last night on MSNBC, host Rachel Maddow interviewed Lt. Col. Victor Fehrenbach, a decorated U.S. Air Force fighter pilot who received notice last September that he was being discharged due to the military’s Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy. Fehrenbach served in both the Iraq and Afghanistan theaters, was just two years away from retiring with a full pension, and estimates that the U.S. military spent roughly $25 million training him. When he received word of his discharge, Fehrenbach decided to fight, hoping that, if elected, Obama would quickly change the policy:
FEHRENBACH: But the more I thought about it, about how wrong this policy is, I thought that I had to fight and perhaps with my unique perspective, I could speak out and help other people in the meantime.
MADDOW: Did you think that President Obama, if he were elected, was going to end the policy?
FEHRENBACH: I did. I had tremendous hope around September and that was actually when I did reverse my decision and decided to fight because I did have hope that President Obama would follow through on his commitment to change the policy and — and initiate a policy of non discrimination.
Watch the interview here:
Transcript: More »
Pentagon: Obama has not ordered military to work on repealing Don’t Ask Don’t Tell.
Pentagon: Obama has not ordered military to work on repealing Don’t Ask Don’t Tell.
Pentagon spokesperson Geoff Morrell said today that it has had only “initial discussions” with the White House about repealing Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, and President Obama has “not asked for the 1993 policy to be scrapped.” “I do not believe there are any plans under way in this building for some expected, but not articulated, anticipation that don’t ask-don’t tell will be repealed,” Morrell said. He added that the Joint Chiefs and Secretary of Defense Robert Gates are “aware of where the president wants to go on this issue, but I don’t think that there is any sense of any immediate developments in the offing on efforts to repeal don’t ask-don’t tell.” Today’s remarks appear contrary to White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs’s claim last week that Obama is currently “working with…members of the Joint Chiefs” to repeal the policy. The Boston Globe reported today that 619 individuals were discharged last year under the Don’t Ask Don’t Tell policy.
Uruguay lifts ban on gays serving openly in the military.
Uruguay lifts ban on gays serving openly in the military.
On Thursday, Uruguayan President Tabare Vazquez announced that his government will “allow gays to join the armed forces by scrapping military rules that define homosexuality as a disorder.” Vazquez explained his decision saying, “The Uruguayan government does not discriminate against citizens based on their political, ethnic or sexual identity.” Urugquay’s Deputy Defense Minister elaborated, “There were a series of rules … regarding the psycho-physical requirements (for entry into the armed forces) in which homosexuality was seen as a sexual identity disorder, and this is what is being repealed.” President Obama insists that he still intends to repeal Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, which bans gays from openly serving in the U.S. military, but has not said when he will begin the process.
Army Lt. discharged under DADT writes to Obama: ‘I beg you today: Do not fire me.’
Army Lt. discharged under DADT writes to Obama: ‘I beg you today: Do not fire me.’
Last week, the U.S. Army discharged National Guard Lt. Daniel Choi — who served in Iraq and is fluent in Arabic — because he came out of the closet as a gay man. “Why didn’t I just shut up and not say anything?” Choi asked. Because “the Army values teach us, have courage, take personal courage, stand up, don’t lie, be honest about who you are,” he said. Choi said he would fight his dismissal “tooth and nail” and now he has written Congress and President Obama “begging” them not to fire him:
As an infantry officer, I am not accustomed to begging. But I beg you today: Do not fire me. Do not fire me because my soldiers are more than a unit or a fighting force – we are a family and we support each other. We should not learn that honesty and courage leads to punishment and insult. Their professionalism should not be rewarded with losing their leader. I understand if you must fire me, but please do not discredit and insult my soldiers for their professionalism.
When I was commissioned I was told that I serve at the pleasure of the President. I hope I have not displeased anyone by my honesty. I love my job. I want to deploy and continue to serve with the unit I respect and admire. I want to continue to serve our country because of everything it stands for.
Please do not wait to repeal Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. Please do not fire me.
Army officer Sandy Tsao also wrote to Obama after she told her superiors she was gay and asked him to repeal Don’t Ask Don’t Tell. Obama personally responded, writing, “I committed to changing our current policy. Although it will take some time to complete. … I intend to fulfill my commitment!” (HT: AmericaBlog)
McCain: ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ Has ‘Been Working And I Think It’s Been Working Well’
McCain: ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ Has ‘Been Working And I Think It’s Been Working Well’
In January, Sandy Tsao, an army officer, told her superiors that she is gay — a violation of the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell (DADT) law. On May 5, Tsao received a handwritten letter from President Obama stating that he is “committed to changing our current policy,” but that “it will take some time to complete (partly because it needs Congressional action).”
Today, ABC’s George Stephanopoulos asked Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) about his views on DADT. McCain did not commit to changing the policy, saying, “in all due respect, right now the military is functioning extremely well” without openly-gay service members. McCain concluded that the policy “is working well”:
McCAIN: But in all due respect, right now the military is functioning extremely well in very difficult conditions. We have to have an assessment on recruitment, on retention and all the other aspects of the impact on our military if we change the policy. In my view, and I know that a lot of people don’t agree with that, the policy has been working and I think it’s been working well.
Watch it:
McCain’s statement defending the efficacy of DADT comes in the wake of news that the military is about to discharge Dan Choi — a gay Arabic speaker –- simply for being openly gay. Choi’s dismissal is “the first known case” of a “mission-critical specialist” being discharged under DADT by the Obama administration. Last week, Choi told MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow why the policy is problematic:
CHOI: But the biggest thing that I’m angry about is what it says about my unit. It says that my unit suffered negative good order — negative actions — good order and discipline suffered. That’s a big insult to my unit. I mean, all the insult that the letter can do, to say that I’m worthy of being fired, you know, that’s nothing comparing to saying that my unit is not professional enough, that my unit does not deserve to have a leader that is willing to deploy, that has skills to contribute.
Choi isn’t alone. Since 1994, DADT has resulted in the discharge of more than 13,000 military personnel across the services, including approximately 800 with skills deemed “mission critical,” such as pilots, combat engineers, and linguists. According to a 2005 report from the Government Accountability Office, “the cost of discharging and replacing service members fired because of their sexual orientation during the policy’s first 10 years totaled at least $190.5 million — roughly $20,000 per discharged service member.
It’s unclear how these facts led McCain to conclude that the policy is “working well.”
Obama sends handwritten letter to gay soldier ousted from the military promising to repeal DADT.
Obama sends handwritten letter to gay soldier ousted from the military promising to repeal DADT.
In January, Sandy Tsao, an army officer based out of St. Louis, MO, told her superiors that she is gay — a violation of the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell law. Tsao then wrote to President Obama, urging him to change the DADT policy: “I do hope, Mr. President, that you will help us to win the war against prejudice.” On May 5, Tsao received a handwritten letter from Obama with a pledge to repeal DADT at some point:
In the letter, Obama wrote that he is “committed to changing our current policy” but that “it will take some time to complete (partly because it needs Congressional action).” Yesterday, Rep. Joe Sestak (D-PA), who has sponsored legislation repealing DADT, discussed the issue with Rachel Maddow, saying, “I’d like to see us move it by this summer, and I think we can.”
(HT: Windy City Times)
Arabic-speaking linguist dismissed from Army National Guard due to Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.
Arabic-speaking linguist dismissed from Army National Guard due to Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.
During the presidential campaign, then-Senator Obama said that if elected, he would repeal the military’s Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy, which bars openly gay men and women from serving in the armed forces. To support his position, Obama argued that “We’re spending large sums of money to kick highly qualified gays or lesbians out of our military, some of whom possess specialties like Arab-language capabilities that we desperately need.” But since taking office, the Obama administration resisted moving to repeal the policy, with Defense Secretary of Defense Robert Gates saying he hoped to “push that one down the road a little bit.” Now, Aaron Belkin reports that the first Arabic linguist is being dismissed from the military under Obama’s watch:
Dan Choi, a West Point graduate and officer in the Army National Guard who is fluent in Arabic and who returned recently from Iraq, received notice today that the military is about to fire him. Why? Because he came out of the closet as a gay man on national television.
According to Belkin, a soon-to-be-released study by a group of experts in military law will show that “President Obama does, in fact, have stroke-of-the-pen authority to suspend gay discharges.” “An executive order would not get rid of the ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ law, but would take the critical step of suspending its implementation, hence rendering it effectively dead,” says Belkin.
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