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Obama Campaign Holds Policy Briefing on "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"

Surrogates for Sen. Barack Obama briefed reporters Tuesday on the senator's support for repealing the military's discriminatory policy, saying it is outmoded and serves as a hindrance to recruiting the best and brightest for the nation's Armed Services.
An Advocate.com exclusive posted September 17, 2008
Obama Campaign Holds Policy Briefing on

The Barack Obama campaign held a conference call Wednesday aimed at contrasting the senator's support for repeal of the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy with John McCain’s belief in maintaining the ban against gays and lesbians serving openly in the Armed Forces.

“John McCain does not believe that our military personnel are as professional as the 23 other NATO countries that allow their military members to serve openly,” said Rep. Patrick Murphy of Pennsylvania, who emerged as a fervent straight ally for repealing the ban in July at the first congressional hearings held on the policy since 1993. “As many of you know, they did adopt a platform -- John McCain and Sarah Palin -- that emphasized the incompatibility of homosexuality within the military service.”

The GOP platform asserts, “To protect our servicemen and women and ensure that America’s Armed Forces remain the best in the world, we affirm the timelessness of those values, the benefits of traditional military culture, and the incompatibility of homosexuality with military service.”

The Democratic platform, by contrast, calls for an end to the policy in the name of military preparedness: “We support the repeal of ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ and the implementation of policies to allow qualified men and women to serve openly regardless of sexual orientation.”

Without calling the 72-year-old McCain by name, retired Lt. General Claudia Kennedy noted a generational difference in perspective on being gay. “We're in the generation of soldiers who don't think this is nearly as important as some of the people who are from a much older generation,” the 60-year-old Kennedy said of the group of Obama surrogates on the conference call.

Kennedy, the first woman to reach the rank of a three-star general, added that Sen. Joseph Lieberman -- a strong McCain supporter -- and the former Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman, retired General John Shalikashvili, have both said the “outmoded” policy should be changed.

“There’s just no question in my mind that we ought to look at the entire talent pool,” she said, in relation to recruitment. “We should not be artificially limiting who we look at as a potential soldier.” 

Some reporters raised questions about whether Obama’s support for reinstating the Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) programs on college campuses nationwide -- some colleges expelled ROTC programs during the tumult of the Vietnam War -- was in conflict with his commitment to ending “don’t ask, don’t tell.” Many campuses continue to ban military recruitment of any kind based on the military’s discriminatory policy against gays.

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Kerry Eleveld is political editor of The Advocate.
Keywords:  2008 Election  Barack Obama  DADT 
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Reader Comments

These comments are reproduced as written by visitors to this Web site. They have not been edited for content, grammar, or spelling. The viewpoints appearing here are those of the writer, and do not necessarily reflect the opinion or views of advocate.com, The Advocate, or its affiliates.

  • Name: Roger Brr
    Date posted: 2008-09-20 6:59 PM
    Hometown: Mable Hill, MO

    Comment:

    Obama WILL repeal DADT. He has not come out for same-sex marriage as it is still too politically charged an issue. If he took a positive stance on same-sex marriage now, he would be giving the Republicans an unbelievable weapon to use against him with conservative voters. He MUST appear more 'middle of the road' in order to avoid alienating moderate voters on whose support he is counting to secure election. I have faith that this man WILL prove to be our friend. The Republicans have made it abundantly clear that THEY aren't!


  • Name: VOTE OBAMA FOR A MORE EQUAL and INCLUSIVE AMERICA!
    Date posted: 2008-09-20 6:57 PM
    Hometown: United States

    Comment:

    Obama speaks to our community and speaks to other audiences about the need for inclusion. He supports us serving openly, and adopting, and opposes proposition 8, and supports civil unions. He is likely to have a much more inclusive administration than we've ever had before. VOTE OBAMA FOR A MORE EQUAL and INCLUSIVE AMERICA!


  • Name: Michael
    Date posted: 2008-09-19 7:55 PM
    Hometown: Sacramento

    Comment:

    Obama's not going to do anything about DODT except sit on his ass "praying" for Congress to do the right thing. He's taking Douglas Kmiec on his "fath tour". he came to California and did NOTHING to help the fight against Prop 8. He's not even going to say that his Attorney General should get involved in any possible DOMA cases. Can you groupies hear that bus coming?


  • Name: jason
    Date posted: 2008-09-19 2:05 AM
    Hometown: miami

    Comment:

    Obama sounds like he's hesitating on repealing DADT. He could be sucking us into voting for him only to go back on his word once he's President. He's not to be trusted as far as I'm concerned. Another Democratic disappointment.


  • Name: jason
    Date posted: 2008-09-19 2:04 AM
    Hometown: miami

    Comment:

    Obama sounds like he's hesitating on repealing DADT. He could be sucking us into voting for him only to go back on his word once he's President. He's not to be trusted as far as I'm concerned. Another Democratic disappointment.


  • Name: Robert
    Date posted: 2008-09-18 5:26 PM
    Hometown: Shakopee

    Comment:

    Remember that it was a DEMOCRAT who gave us the DOMA, along with famous other democrats like Wellstone. Gays are foolish to think that Obama is going to get rid of it. He even states that as a "Christian" he DOES NOT BELIVE IN GAY MARRIAGE as HE stated in the Chicago Tribune. What is it going to take the Gay community to finally put their money where their mouth is and not pay until they get what they want. It is utter foolishenss to continue to vote for democrats and get nothing for it. Last time we got screwed. Vote for him if you want, but don't expect anything for it. Good little queer, vote for me and you get nothing.


  • Name: ed
    Date posted: 2008-09-18 4:05 PM
    Hometown: Humble, Texas

    Comment:

    Let's hope that Obama's stance on DADT won't disappear when he takes office. This will be a tough nut to crack.


  • Name: Roger Burr
    Date posted: 2008-09-18 2:31 PM
    Hometown: Marble Hill, O

    Comment:

    FINALLY, a politician who has the guts to stand up for what is RIGHT, rather than simply what is politically expedient. FYI... It was a Democrat, President Harry Truman, who integrated the military so that black and white soldiers were no longer segregated. The Republicans 'values' blow with the political winds... Kevin Dobson of the hate group 'Focus On The Family' has sent lawyers to Alaska to try to help bury Palin's unsavory past. This serves as just ONE example. The Democrats are the ones with the sense of TRUE morality in DOING what is right!


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