Crist Supports DADT Deal

Florida governor and U.S. Senate candidate Charlie Crist says that he now supports the proposed compromise to repeal "don't ask, don't tell."

Crist, who previously opposed lifting the ban on open service by gays and lesbians in the military, was pressured by his Senate competitors -- GOP candidate Marco Rubio and Democrat Kendrick Meek -- to state his stance. Crist is running as an independent.

"Ultimately, as in all military matters I defer to the Pentagon and to the generals and what the Senate is doing today is giving them the ultimate authority to do what is best for our military," he said in a statement to The Washington Post. "So, I would be inclined to support the Senate's action on this."