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At issue is the repeal of Section 654 of Title X of the U.S. Code. This law, on the books since 1993, states (in part): "The presence in the armed forces of persons who demonstrate a propensity or intent to engage in homosexual acts would create an unacceptable risk to the high standards of morale, good order and discipline, and unit cohesion that are the essence of military capability."

Repeal of the 1993 law noted above did not repeal the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ).

The UCMJ was passed by Congress on 5 May 1950, signed into law by President Harry S. Truman, and became effective on 31 May 1951.

Uniform Code of Military Justice [excerpted]:

Article 125.

“(a) Any person subject to this chapter who engages in unnatural carnal copulation with another person of the same or opposite sex or with an animal is guilty of sodomy. Penetration, however slight, is sufficient  to complete the offense.

(b) Any person found guilty of sodomy shall by punished as a court-martial may direct.”

The oath taken by every president on first entering office is specified in Article II, Section 1, of the Constitution:

I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States. [emphasis added]

US Constitution [excerpted]

Article I

Section. 8.

Clause 14: [The Congress shall have Power] To make Rules for the Government and Regulation of the land and naval Forces;

Note that Congress has prohibited sodomy in the military through the UCMJ. All of the extraneous uproar concerning the repeal of the 1993 law is just that unless Congress takes the additional action of changing the UCMJ. Military commanders, including the “Commander-in-Chief,” are obligated by their oaths of office to enforce the rules and regulations made pursuant to laws (UCMJ) promulgated by Congress for the US military.

The foundation of US military law was the British Articles of War. In fact, our first military justice codes, the American Articles of War and Articles for the Government of the Navy, predate the US Constitution and the Declaration of Independence.

From the 1749 Royal Navy Articles of War [excerpted]:

If any person in the fleet shall commit the unnatural and detestable sin of buggery and sodomy with man or beast, he shall be punished with death by the sentence of a court martial.

The act of sodomy has been condemned in various legal codes for more than 3,500 years. Specifically, English language, military justice codes have criminalized sodomy for hundreds of years. This prohibition is, and, has been, in place for good reason.

Sodomy is morally and religiously offensive, if not repugnant, to the overwhelming majority of the military’s population as well as the civil populace. Consequently, allowing the unrestricted practice of sodomy within the ranks of any military organization would be detrimental to the good order and discipline, hence military effectiveness, of that group.

As a result, condoning the open practice of sodomy is extremely unwise militarily, completely apart from any religious or other aspects. However, there are other practical reasons for prohibiting the practice of sodomy with the military.

The military serves as its own blood bank. Consequently, any contaminant to the blood supply in an organization that potentially requires massive quantities is incredibly unwise.

According to the FDA: "[homosexual practitioners or 'gay' men] have an HIV prevalence 60 times higher than the general population, 800 times higher than first-time blood donors and 8,000 times higher than repeat blood donors."

The FDA further warns: "[homosexual practitioners or 'gay' men] also have an increased risk of having other infections that can be transmitted to others by blood transfusion. For example, infection with the Hepatitis B virus is about 5-6 times more common, and Hepatitis C virus infections are about 2 times more common in "homosexual practitioners than in the general population."

A 2007 CDC study found that, although "gay" men comprise only 1-to-2 percent of the population, they account for an epidemic 64 percent of all syphilis cases.

Some proponents have attempted to disguise the issue of sodomy by using the term sexual preference. According the APA, sexual preference is a term that refers only to feelings. No one can know the sexual preference of another human being unless that person engages in some behavior that reveals such. All behavior by mentally competent adults, especially in a military setting, is subject to regulation. Currently, lawful regulations (UCMJ Art. 125) exist that prohibit homosexual behavior in these settings.

Homosexuality is defined by behavior, i.e., unless one engages in sexual activity with a member of the same sex, he, or she, is not a homosexual. (As previously noted, the term sexual orientation is a description of feelings.) Feelings do not control the voluntary behavior of a mentally healthy, adult human being.

If homosexual behavior is a voluntary choice, then it is subject to the same types of societal (whether civil or military) regulations, i.e., laws, social stigma, etc., as is any other sexual behavior such as pedophilia, prostitution, polygamy, etc. Furthermore, if homosexual behavior is voluntary, it has no more claim to special rights or considerations than does pedophilia, prostitution, polygamy, etc., i.e., none.

If homosexual behavior is a psychosis rather than a voluntary choice, then it is validly subject to treatment and possible cure, just as are nymphomania, drug addiction, etc.

As an added consideration, there is the argument of Darwinian selection: survival of the fittest. Homosexual individuals are incapable of reproduction if they are exclusively homosexual. (If these individuals do not practice exclusively homosexual activity, then, by definition, they can choose not to be homosexual… and the issue is, again, defined as a voluntary, behavioral choice.)

By the principles of genetics, exclusively homosexual practitioners would cause such types of individuals to appear in the population at no greater rate than that of other genetic disorders which prevent their victims from procreating, e.g., Hutchinson–Gilford progeria syndrome, not the currently observed proportion of the population.

Given that the observed homosexual practitioner proportion of the population is around 2% or 3% rather than a small fraction of 1%, homosexuality does not fit the criteria for a genetic source. Once again, the logical conclusion is that homosexual behavior is a voluntary choice.

Without a change to the UCMJ eliminating the prohibition on sodomy, it appears the policy will revert to that which existed before 1993. Homosexual practitioners, if discovered (provably) engaging in sodomy, will be subject to court-martial. Consequently, there will be no time required for the troops to “get used to the change.” The only way this situation can be averted is for the Commander-in-Chief to violate his oath to support the Constitution and issue illegal orders not to enforce the UCMJ.