Friday
May282010
Levin Discusses Defense Authorization Act, Repeal Of 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell'
Friday, May 28, 2010 at 1:52PM
By Miles Wolf Tamboli - Talk Radio News Service
Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI), Chairman of the Armed Services Committee on the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for 2011, supplied the press with more comprehensive information concerning the current status of the new Defense Authorization Act Friday, which was passed by the Senate Armed Services Committee Thursday night.
Senator Levin remarked that, "this is a huge bill ... this is a bill which supports our troops, funds our troops, equips our troops, trains our troops, supports their families, [and] provides medical care."
The legislation, though, contains a number of hot-topic measures, including a call for the repeal of Defense Directive 1304.26, popularly known as "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," which bars openly gay and lesbian soldiers from serving in the U.S. military. Levin told reporters that he hopes the legislation will be successful, though he was careful to note that passing the legislation is still only one of many hurdles; "even if we get the certification ... it still requires action by the military to act on their own regulations and their own prohibitions."
Levin expressed his discontent that the Committee voted to eliminate the availability of funding for the construction of a military detention facility in Illinois, which would have served as a part of the Obama administration's effort to close down the highly controversial detention facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
Concerning the Committee's approval of an amendment that would require the President to send 6,000 National Guard personnel to the U.S. border with Mexico, Levin stated; "My view is that it's inappropriate for Congress to mandate that specific deployment. We can authorize it, we can fund it, but we can not - in my judgement - constitutionally mandate it; only the President can do that."
The Senator's strongest message, however, was that the "heart" of the bill is, "what we must do for our troops, what we must do to succeed wherever our troops are in harm's way, what we must do for their families, what we must do in terms of health care, what we must do in terms of PTSD, [and] what we must do in terms of acquisition reform ... While I know that the focus is on items such as Don't Ask, Don't Tell, or whether or not the prison in Illinois should be opened or closed, my ninety-nine dominant view is that this is a bill which is required to support our troops."
Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI), Chairman of the Armed Services Committee on the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for 2011, supplied the press with more comprehensive information concerning the current status of the new Defense Authorization Act Friday, which was passed by the Senate Armed Services Committee Thursday night.
Senator Levin remarked that, "this is a huge bill ... this is a bill which supports our troops, funds our troops, equips our troops, trains our troops, supports their families, [and] provides medical care."
The legislation, though, contains a number of hot-topic measures, including a call for the repeal of Defense Directive 1304.26, popularly known as "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," which bars openly gay and lesbian soldiers from serving in the U.S. military. Levin told reporters that he hopes the legislation will be successful, though he was careful to note that passing the legislation is still only one of many hurdles; "even if we get the certification ... it still requires action by the military to act on their own regulations and their own prohibitions."
Levin expressed his discontent that the Committee voted to eliminate the availability of funding for the construction of a military detention facility in Illinois, which would have served as a part of the Obama administration's effort to close down the highly controversial detention facility in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
Concerning the Committee's approval of an amendment that would require the President to send 6,000 National Guard personnel to the U.S. border with Mexico, Levin stated; "My view is that it's inappropriate for Congress to mandate that specific deployment. We can authorize it, we can fund it, but we can not - in my judgement - constitutionally mandate it; only the President can do that."
The Senator's strongest message, however, was that the "heart" of the bill is, "what we must do for our troops, what we must do to succeed wherever our troops are in harm's way, what we must do for their families, what we must do in terms of health care, what we must do in terms of PTSD, [and] what we must do in terms of acquisition reform ... While I know that the focus is on items such as Don't Ask, Don't Tell, or whether or not the prison in Illinois should be opened or closed, my ninety-nine dominant view is that this is a bill which is required to support our troops."
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