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Advocate: Senate Committee Passes DADT Amendment
The Senate Armed Services Committee approved a measure Thursday that could mark the beginning of the end of the "don't tell, don't tell" policy.
By Kerry Eleveld
The Senate Armed Services Committee approved a measure Thursday 16-12 that would begin the process of dismantling the 17-year-old “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy that prohibits gays and lesbians for serving openly in the military.
Senator Susan Collins of Maine was the lone Republican on the committee joining 15 of her Democratic committee members to approve the measure as an attachment to the 2011 National Defense Authorization Act. Senator Jim Webb of Virginia was the only Democrat to vote against it.
As of 6:50 p.m. Eastern, it was unclear whether the House would vote on the measure Thursday night or Friday morning. But House Speaker Nancy Pelosi expressed confidence that she had the support to pass the amendment from Rep. Patrick Murphy of Pennsylvania.
“I think the votes are there,” she told reporters Thursday during a press conference.
If signed into law as part of the Defense funding bill, the measure would not immediately repeal the law. “Don’t ask, don’t tell” would continue as the official policy of the military until two events occur: the Pentagon completes an implementation study due in December; and the secretary of Defense, chairman of the Joint Chiefs and President Barack Obama certify that repeal will not weaken military readiness. Once those two requirements are met, a 60-day waiting period will begin before the policy is finally lifted.
Repeal advocates celebrated the historic vote even as they acknowledged that it was one step in what promises to be a multi-tiered process.
Aubrey Sarvis, executive director of the pro-repeal Servicemembers Legal Defense Network hailed Democrats for persevering in the face of opposition from the military’s leadership.
“Chairman Carl Levin and Senator Joe Lieberman showed remarkable courage and steadfastness in the face of unprecedented and inappropriate last minute lobbying by the Pentagon service chiefs who seemed to have forgotten that they are not the policy makers here,” he said.
But Sarvis also cautioned that the road to repeal was not over.
“The Senate Armed Services Committee passed a historic roadmap to allowing open military service but it doesn’t end the discharges. It is important for all gay and lesbian, active-duty service members, including the reserves and the National Guard, to know they’re at risk,” he said. “They must continue to serve in silence under the ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ law that remains on the books.”
Some activists expressed concerns about the last minute 60-day concession that was made to secure the vote of West Virginia’s senator Robert Byrd. But Alex Nicholson, executive director of the gay veterans organization Servicemembers United, said the extra time would delay but ultimately not disrupt the repeal process.
“It is our understanding that the additional 60 days are just an extra cushion added into the delayed implementation timeline,” said Nicholson. “Once the president, the secretary of Defense, and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff sign the certification letter and transmit it to the House and Senate Armed Services Committees, the 60-day clock starts and when it runs out then the new law goes into effect automatically.”
Once the Pentagon working group issues its review, Fred Sainz, vice president of communications for the Human Rights Campaign, said expected the process to proceed with dispatch.
“The experience of foreign militaries and dozens of studies have been that gays and lesbians should be integrated into the military immediately,” he said. “Following the completion of the study, we expect that the administration will proceed expeditiously.”
Admiral Mike Mullen stoked concerns of repeal advocates after he was quoted Thursday saying the certification process – or the “trigger” – would give military leadership control over whether to finally repeal the policy.
"That trigger is to certify whether we should move ahead with that change, even if the law were to repeal it," reported the American Forces Press Service.
But a spokesperson for Mullen said the chairman’s quote was misinterpreted and that he remains personally committed to repeal.
“What he was trying to articulate there, is that the draft legislation provides the department the ability to complete the review, exercise our own discretion with respect to new policies and regulations and certify that we are ready for implementation before the policy can take effect,” Captain John Kirby told The Advocate. “There is no doubt in the chairman’s mind that the president’s intent and desire is to repeal the policy.”
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