O’Donnell Compares DADT to Adultery

Christine O'Donnell, the Republican U.S. Senate candidate from Delaware, repeatedly defended the "don't ask, don't tell" policy in a debate Wednesday night by arguing that the military also does not allow adultery.

The Wonk Room reports on the debate between Democrat Chris Coons and O'Donnell, who gay-baited her primary opponent and has a lesbian sister helping her campaign.

O'Donnell said, "A federal judge recently ruled that we have to overturn 'don't ask, don't tell.' There are a couple of things we need to say about that. First of all, judges should not be legislating from the bench. Second of all, it's up to the military to set the policy that the military believes is in the best interest of unit cohesiveness and military readiness. The military already regulates personal behavior in that it doesn't allow affairs to go on within your chain of command. It does not allow if you are married to have an adulterous affair within the military. So the military already regulates personal behavior because it feels that it is in the best interest of our military readiness. I don't think that Congress should be forcing a social agenda on to our military. I think we should leave that to the military."

The Wonk Roomreports, "Pressed by debate moderator Wolf Blitzer about why the United States is one of the few NATO members to prohibit open service, O'Donnell reiterated her offensive simile and added, 'If the heads of all four branches of the military said [they favored repeal], then it would be up to them, not me as U.S. senator to impose my social agenda, whether it's for or against 'don't ask, don't tell.'"