Will McCain or Obama remove discriminatory measure to allow gay men/women to serve openly in the military?
[DON'T ASK, DON'T TELL]
One of Bill Clinton's first acts as president was to propose that gay servicemen and women be allowed to serve openly. That was 15 years ago, and it almost derailed his presidency. Instead, the military adopted a policy called "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," where gays can serve as long as they remain in the closet. The Pentagon says it's been a success. But 12,000 military men and women have been discharged under the policy. Now something curious is happening. As reported on 60 Minutes last December, discharges of gay soldiers are dropping, dramatically: from over 1,200 a year in 2001to barely 600. With the military struggling to fight two wars, there are growing calls to repeal the policy and growing evidence that some commanders could care less about sexual orientation.
Many Americans (including majorities of Democrats, Republicans and independents alike)think it is ok for openly gay people to serve in the U.S. armed forces, which they can not do under the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy, which congress passed (thanks to former Sen. Sam Nunn, Sen. Robert Byrd and others) and Bill Clinton signed into law. A new Washington Post-ABC poll says 75% of Americans now support allowing gays in the military—compared to 44 percent in 1993. That support cuts across party identification to include a majority of Republicans. Even 57% of white evangelical Protestants now support allowing openly gay service members in the military. Given the bigger majorities Democrats are certain to enjoy in the Congress that convenes in January 2009, failure to remove this discriminatory measure, which undermines America's ability to defend itself and wage the war on terrorism, is utterly unacceptable.
One of Bill Clinton's first acts as president was to propose that gay servicemen and women be allowed to serve openly. That was 15 years ago, and it almost derailed his presidency. Instead, the military adopted a policy called "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," where gays can serve as long as they remain in the closet. The Pentagon says it's been a success. But 12,000 military men and women have been discharged under the policy. Now something curious is happening. As reported on 60 Minutes last December, discharges of gay soldiers are dropping, dramatically: from over 1,200 a year in 2001to barely 600. With the military struggling to fight two wars, there are growing calls to repeal the policy and growing evidence that some commanders could care less about sexual orientation.
Many Americans (including majorities of Democrats, Republicans and independents alike)think it is ok for openly gay people to serve in the U.S. armed forces, which they can not do under the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy, which congress passed (thanks to former Sen. Sam Nunn, Sen. Robert Byrd and others) and Bill Clinton signed into law. A new Washington Post-ABC poll says 75% of Americans now support allowing gays in the military—compared to 44 percent in 1993. That support cuts across party identification to include a majority of Republicans. Even 57% of white evangelical Protestants now support allowing openly gay service members in the military. Given the bigger majorities Democrats are certain to enjoy in the Congress that convenes in January 2009, failure to remove this discriminatory measure, which undermines America's ability to defend itself and wage the war on terrorism, is utterly unacceptable.