Questioning 'Don't Ask Don't Tell'
Democratic Candidates State Their Positions on U.S. Military Policy
© Kat Long
The top Democratic presidential candidates advocate a repeal of the anti-gay U.S. military policy known as "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," and gay voters are listening.
The U.S. military policy known as “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT) has emerged as a hot-button issue for gay voters in the upcoming U.S. presidential election.
This 1993 law prohibits openly gay men and women from serving in the U.S. armed forces. Supervisors are not allowed to ask subordinates about their sexual orientation, and servicemembers are not allowed to tell anyone they are gay or lesbian, hence the nickname of this discriminatory policy.
The Iraq War has placed a spotlight on the military’s need for increased recruitment and retaining of servicemembers with specialized skills, such as fluency in Arabic. DADT, however, mandates dismissal for servicemembers who announce their homosexuality. From 1994 to 2005, the latest year for which data is available, more than 11,000 servicemembers were dismissed for violating DADT.
Many voters are questioning the wisdom of firing valuable personnel in wartime simply for being gay. According to a 2007 CNN poll cited by the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, an LGBT advocacy group, 79% of Americans believe people who are “openly gay or homosexual should be allowed to serve in the U.S. military.”
The top three Democratic candidates—Hillary Rodham Clinton, Barack Obama, and John Edwards—have called for a repeal of this fourteen-year-old law. Here are their views. (The Republican contenders all oppose changing DADT).
Hillary Rodham Clinton
“…I have watched how "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" has been implemented, and I've concluded that it is not the best way for us as a nation to proceed…In this particular time period, we've had Arabic linguists discharged under "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" when we are, unfortunately, so short of having people who speak the very language that our men and women in uniform have to understand in the streets of Baghdad. I believe we could change the policy to let gays and lesbians serve in the military and be covered by the Uniform Code of Military Justice…I believe we should open up our military.”
(Second 2008 Democratic Presidential Debate, June 3, 2007)
Barack Obama
“…As president, I will work with Congress and place the weight of my administration behind enactment of the Military Readiness Enhancement Act, which will make nondiscrimination the official policy of the U.S. military. I will task the Defense Department and the senior command structure in every branch of the armed forces with developing an action plan for the implementation of a full repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell. And I will direct my Secretaries of Defense and Homeland Security to develop procedures for taking re-accession requests from those qualified service members who were separated from the armed forces under Don't Ask, Don't Tell and still want to serve their country…The military must be our active partners in developing those policies and protocols…America is ready to get rid of the Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy. All that is required is leadership.
(BarackObama.com, stated November 29, 2007)
John Edwards
“It is long past time to end the military's “Don't Ask, Don't Tell” policy and to allow openly gay men and women to serve in the military. It is critical to our national security that we have the best people in our military. Gay men and women have continually served our country with honor and bravery, and we should honor their commitment and never turn away anyone who is willing to serve their country because of their sexual orientation. This is an issue of fundamental fairness — and our military ought to treat everyone fairly.”
(John Edwards.com, stated February 28, 2007)
