Posted on 05/30/2010 9:45:38 AM PDT by jazusamo
Adm. Michael Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Sen. Jim Webb (D-Va.) said Sunday that Congress should have waited until the Defense Department completed its troop survey before moving forward with legislation to repeal the "Don't ask, don't tell" ban on gays serving openly in the military.
"I would've preferred that the legislation was not brought forward until we were done with review," Mullen told Candy Crowley this morning on CNN's "State of the Union."
"I have said I think it is important to get through this review," said Mullen, who supports ending the ban. "It's really critical to understand the points of view of who it affects the most."
The House passed legislation attached to a defense authorization bill on Friday that would repeal the ban and a Senate panel acted on Thursday, with Webb voting against the plan.
Webb wouldn't provide his support for a repeal, saying he will defer to what soldiers say they want.
"I'm really disappointed in the way the process was accelerated," Webb said. "I believe we had a process in place and to preempt it shows a disrespect for the people in the military.
"Ideally the survey would be in place before we legislate," Webb said. "Congress is jumping ahead despite the need to have some resolution on the issue."
The repeal wouldn't go into effect any earlier than 60 days after enactment and Mullen said a plan for implementation would likely take longer. Mullen, Defense Department Secretary Robert Gates and the Obama administration will determine how to best install the changes. President Barack Obama has called for an end to the policy.
When it gets implemented is "still in play" in ways that "makes this review in collecting the information and understanding what's going on at the death plate level from our troops and our families that much more critical," Mullen said. "We will complete that review and certainly incorporate what we learned from that into implementation when that time comes."
Former Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Colin Powell said Sunday he supports the repeal of the "Don't ask, don't tell" policy as long as military leaders are allowed to weigh in on the change.
"I'm personally of the view now that attitudes and have changed and i think it's perfectly acceptable to get rid of the law and the policy," said Powell, also a former secretary of State, said on ABC's "This Week." "But before we actually do it we have to hear clearly from the officers, the men and women who are in charge of executing this policy."
Powell backed the ban on gays serving openly when it was implemented in the 1990s and when he was President Bill Clinton's top military adviser.
Powell said the military should have time to study the issue before implementing a new policy, siding with Mullen and Gates. He said it was important to listen to troops who will be affected.
Powell cautioned policy makers not to underestimate issues such as domestic partnerships and same-sex marriage that were also dealt with when the "Don't ask, don't tell" policy began in 1993.
"How do we actually implement this in a way that strengthens the force?" Powell said.
Obama, Pelosi, Reid, and the majority of Democrats have no respect for the military, their actions on this speak volumns.
As for back-stabber Powell? He should butt out.
All I can say is, "Just say NO to drugs".
Damn it’s race day. Coincidences = consequences. I knew that.
...there was no time to be wasted on this bill...Obama likes to act quickly before the sheeple become aroused...he needs the gay vote bad this November...time to get cracking on it right away.
Gays in the military have always been there, and have been accepted. However, under lib-O-diot rules, they’ll want more than equal treatment. Just wait.
Every disciplinary action taken against a perp who happens to be gay will be translated into a prejudicial action against a gay who was driven to be a perp by (choose any or all): parents, capitalism, military life, Bush, Catholic Church, Bambi.
This is all to get the homos fired up to vote dim in November.
I can see the new recruits now. Some new ranks will have to be made..like...Trench Decorator First Class and Combat Hairstylist.
I agree, there’s always been gays in the military but they were not the in-your-face variety, this will change that.
There are two simple questions to ask...which would be curious how they are answered.
First, if we deploy to a country where homosexuality is illegal and a crime...are there going to be issues? I can think of eight countries we currently are in...and there will issues within weeks of implementation. What’s our course with these countries?
Second, when a gay military couple comes up to a military chaplain and ask to be married...and the chaplain’s faith forbids him from taking this action...do you fire the chaplain? I suspect that eighty percent of the chaplains we have now...are already thinking about this question. How do you handle this?
There will also be sensitivity training on homosexuality, and these classes will be the usual in-your-face stuff which soliders will universally hate.
Chaplains will also be under strictures not to preach from either the Bible or the Koran on the issue.
This is going to DESTROY our military and marriage...all in one fell swoop!!
Lookout for the DRAFT that will be coming!!
People will FLEE the military IF there are jobs in the private sector, so Bammy will have to keep Unemployment UP!
He also stated that he was for CHANGING the rules.
Maybe he hoped to be retired before this monstrous law went into effect.
Ambiguity is not leadership.
Someone please tell me, what does “serve openly” actually mean?
They've certainly become that and Gen. Casey proved it.
Under “don’t ask, don’t tell,” homosexuals have to keep their perversion secret. If they openly announce their homosexuality, they get kicked out.
The repeal of DADT will allow homosexuals to announce their perversion freely without consequence.
The problem is homosexuals are never happy until their perversion is accepted as “normal” and honored 100%, and anyone who disagrees destroyed.
It’s worse than that. Gays will be a privileged class. Every aspect of military culture will be argued to be anti-gay. Every gay soldier will have a JAG officer on speed dial and every unit with a gay soldier will be on eggshells.
Meanwhile, straight women soldiers and sailors will be pressured out. It will be a lesbians-only club.
I’ve also seen where this is all scheduled to wrap up in December. Just in time for a lame-duck vote.
Who does Mullen think he is kidding? He was the one who pushed for this and when he realized that the Service Chiefs weren’t behind it and started raising serious red flags, he started doing damage control. We need to put a Marine back in charge at the Joint Chiefs level IMO. General Pace had a backbone and shot straight.
Great questions. I’d add to that list: what happens in military housing. Who protects straights from the needs of the crookeds? It looks like homosexuality will be treated somewhat like atrocious table manners, in that not a damn thing will be done for those with refined or even semirefined sensibilities.
Most demeaning of all, to me, is the continuing demeaning of our troops in general. It’s not bad enough that they’re sacrificing lives, careers, and comfort; they’ve just been told that any illegal alien will have exactly the same right and access to health care as they, and they’re going to be living with, up until very recently, dangerously disordered individuals who apparently believe their self-identification is more important than committed, cohesive military service. The troops deserve none of this.
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