Lieberman Pushes Legislation To Repeal Don't Ask, Don't Tell

By Sofia Sanchez University of New Mexico/ Talk Radio News Service

Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) introduced legislation Wednesday that will effectively repeal Don't Ask, Don't Tell, a controversial policy that has prevented gay men and women from openly serving in the military.

"In sum, it is time for Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell to go," said Lieberman during a press conference Wednesday.

The bill, titled the Military Readiness Enhancement Act, has also found backing from Senators Carl Levin (D-Mich.), Sen. Roland Burris (D-Ill.), Sen. Mark Udall (D-Colo.), Sen. Kristen Gillibrand (D-N.Y.).

“When people are not allowed to serve simply because of their sexual orientation, it diminishes our readiness, it diminishes our strength, it denies us ... men and women who can contribute to the defense of their country,” said Levin, who chairs the Senate Armed Services Committee, during an appearance alongside Lieberman.

Levin went on to dismiss concerns that allowing openly gay soldiers to serve in the military would damper morale, and pointed to several other nations that have allowed gay men and women to serve without any impact on unit cohesion or morale.

"We have asked about this in hearings," said Levin. "We have been assured that there is no diminution of readiness or morale.”

Pentagon To Weigh Benefits Of Lifting 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell'

By Monique Cala- University of New Mexico/ Talk Radio News Service

Secretary of Defense Robert Gates announced Tuesday during a hearing with the Senate Armed Services Committee that the Pentagon is preparing to repeal 'Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ by launching a 45 day study on the effects of lifting the controversial measure that has banned gays from serving openly in the military.

“We have received our orders from the Commander in Chief and we are moving out accordingly,” said Gates. “However, we can only take this process so far, as the ultimate decision rests with you, the Congress.”

Admiral Michael Mullen announced his support for the president's call to repeal the measure.

“It is my personal belief that allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly would be the right thing to do. We have in place a policy which forces young men and women to lie about who they are, in order to defend their fellow citizens. For me personally, it comes down to integrity. Theirs as individuals and ours as an institution.”

Mullen said he will give the president “the best military advice” on how to implement the repeal.

Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) presented the committee with a list of over a thousand signatures of former military officers opposing the lift of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.'

“This would be a substantial and controversial change to a policy that has been successful for two decades,” said McCain. “It would also present yet, another challenge to our military at a time of already tremendous stress and strain.”

Both Mullen and Gates agreed that the 45 day study will help repeal 'Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell' without negatively affecting those who are already deployed.

“We believe that any implementation plan for a policy permitting gays and lesbians to serve openly in the armed forces must be carefully derived, sufficiently thorough, and thoughtfully executed,” said Mullen.

House May Try To Pass Smaller Individual Healthcare Bills, Says Hoyer

Unwilling to make the ultimate concession and pass the Senate’s healthcare reform bill, the House may try to pass a series of individual bills, said House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) on Tuesday.

“We may have individual bills on the floor...that’s in discussion,” said Hoyer, who acknowledged that passing piecemeal legislation could be difficult given that many reform provisions rely on others to be effective. Hoyer said that a decision on how to proceed would be made “as soon as [House leaders] know the way forward.”

In addition to healthcare, Hoyer touched upon a laundry list of issues during his weekly briefing with reporters, including Pay-Go legislation that passed the Senate last week. The Majority Leader said that the House would vote on a Pay-Go proposal of its own within a bill to raise the nation's debt ceiling on Thursday.

Addressing the big news story of the day -- testimony from Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Adm. Michael Mullen regarding ending the military’s ‘Don’t Ask Don’t Tell’ policy -- Hoyer said he supported doing away with the controversial practice.

“‘Don’t Ask Don’t Tell’ needs to be repealed,” he said. Hoyer added that although Mullen called for an end to the policy during Tuesday’s hearing before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Congress would wait to act on putting forth legislation.

Later, Hoyer blasted Republican leadership for blocking a Senate amendment last week that would’ve created a congressional debt commission. Hoyer took shots at Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), noting that he had been for the commission before he voted against it. The Majority Leader expressed his hope that President Barack Obama would “go forward” on issuing an executive order to create a similar commission.

And for you sports fans out there, when asked for his pick to win the Super Bowl, Hoyer wouldn’t commit to either the Saints or Colts, but may have tipped his hand when he quipped that the “Colts were stolen out of Baltimore...in the dead of night.”

Don't Ask, Don't Tell effects military cohesiveness

"I may be straight, but not narrow" said Rep. Carol Shea-Porter (D-N.H.) at a heated review of the Don't Ask Don't Tell policy before the House Armed Services Committee, Military Personnel Subcommittee. This was the first time in 15 years that the policy had been revisited since its creation in 1993.

Retired Marine Corps. Staff Sgt. and first wounded soldier during the Iraq War Eric Alva, stated that trust was the most important bond he shared with his fellow soldiers, and that when he admitted to them that he was gay, trust and cohesion in the group only strengthened.

Joan Darrah, a retired Navy Captain, echoed Alva's sentiments, saying that she was constantly forced to live a double life while serving. After leaving a room in the Pentagon that was destoryed only minutes later on the morning of 9/11, Darrah realized that her partner of 11 years would have been the last to know, had she been killed. Due to the policy, she said that she was very secretive about her life as a lesbian, not even listing her partner as an emergency contact. In addition, Darrah said that the Don't Ask Don't Tell policy actually hurts troop cohesion by mandating the immediate removal of soldiers who are found to be gay.

Brian Jones, a former Army Special Operations and current business owner and Chief Financial Officer defended Don't Ask Don't Tell by saying that certain military situations require a closeness that could be uncomfortable for heterosexual soldiers, pointing to communal showers and even the need to huddle together for warmth, which he stated can result in the sexual arousal of gay soldiers.

Elaine Donnelly, President of the Center for Military Readiness said that by removing the Don't Ask Don't Tell policy, heterosexual soldiers would be pushed into a situation she called "forced cohabitation". She also stated that by allowing openly gay soliders to fight alongside straight soldiers, the government would be putting an unfair burden on Americans with religious convictions.

Rep. Patrick Murphy (D-Pa.), a member of congress who has served in the US military, exressed sharp criticism of Donnelly for remarks that he said implied that the US Army was not professional enough to to work alongside gay soldiers.