Washington, DC, United States (AHN) – History was being made in the United States on Saturday as the Senate voted 65 to 31 to repeal the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy. The ban on openly gay service members is set to be consigned to “Rest In Peace” land with just a signature from President Barack Obama.
Obama indicated he would sign the bill into law as early as next week. “It is time to allow gay and lesbian Americans to serve their country openly,” said Obama.
The President urged the Senate to “send this bill to my desk so that I can sign it into law,” calling for “time to recognize that sacrifice, valor and integrity are no more defined by sexual orientation than they are by race or gender, religion or creed.”
Welcoming the vote, Defense Secretary Robert Gates said, “Once this legislation is signed into law by the President, the Department of Defense will immediately proceed with the planning necessary to carry out this change carefully and methodically, but purposefully.”
Gates designated Dr. Clifford Stanley, under secretary of defense for personnel and readiness who is a retired Marine Corps major general, to lead the planning effort in the department.
Injecting confusion into the implementation process, Gates, however, added, “Our men and women in uniform understand that while today’s historic vote means that this policy will change, the implementation and certification process will take an additional period of time,” stressing, “In the meantime, the current law and policy will remain in effect.”
“As I have stated before, I will approach this process deliberately and will make such certification only after careful consultation with the military service chiefs and our combatant commanders and when I am satisfied that those conditions have been met for all the services, commands and units,” Gates noted.
Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, echoed the Secretary’s cautious implementation process, saying “handling this through legislation preserves the military’s prerogative to implement change in a responsible, deliberate manner.”
“I look forward to working with Secretary Gates and the service chiefs as we set about the task of preparing and certifying the joint force to implement the new law,” Mullen said in a statement.
The president earlier welcomed the vote of the Senate, calling it “an historic step toward ending a policy that undermines our national security while violating the very ideals that our brave men and women in uniform risk their lives to defend.”
Obama heaved a sigh of relief with his words, “No longer will our nation be denied the service of thousands of patriotic Americans forced to leave the military, despite years of exemplary performance, because they happen to be gay. And no longer will many thousands more be asked to live a lie in order to serve the country they love.”
“As Commander-in-Chief, I am also absolutely convinced that making this change will only underscore the professionalism of our troops as the best led and best trained fighting force the world has ever known,” he added.
On the Senate floor, Democrat Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand said, “I cannot think of a policy that greater undermines the integrity of our armed services.”
Former presidential hopeful Republican Sen. John McCain was conspicuous in his remarks against the passage, saying “we are doing great damage” by passing this legislation.
The Republican minority leader, Sen. Mitch McConnell, echoed McCain’s argument for the “need” to hear from senior enlisted personnel, stressing that not enough review had been accomplished in the Senate.
Democrat Majority Leader Sen. Harry Reid, taking the floor immediately after McConnell, countered, saying that, “to suggest that there hasn’t been hearing after hearing on this is just nonsensical.”
Reid quoted the late Republican Sen. Barry Goldwater, considered a doyen of the modern GOP conservative movement, as saying, “you don’t have to be straight to shoot straight.”
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton called it “a historic step forward for all Americans, a step toward a more perfect union and a more perfect reflection of our core values,” adding, “Our progress on equality here strengthens our advocacy for human dignity everywhere.”
Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell (DADT) restricted the U.S. armed forces from discovering or revealing gay, lesbian or bisexual service members or applicants, while barring those who are openly gay, lesbian, or bisexual from military service.
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