CONTACTStaffCAREER OPPORTUNITIESADVERTISE WITH USPRIVACY POLICYPRIVACY PREFERENCESTERMS OF USELEGAL NOTICE
© 2024 Pride Publishing Inc.
All Rights reserved
All Rights reserved
By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Private Policy and Terms of Use.
In the latest legal back-and-forth over "don't ask, don't tell," attorneys for the Log Cabin Republicans urged a federal judge Friday to reject arguments by the Justice Department to keep the policy in place pending appeal in the case.
On Thursday the Justice Department asked U.S. district judge Virginia A. Phillips to stay her decision barring enforcement of "don't ask, don't tell," which she ruled unconstitutional in September.
A senior Pentagon personnel official warned the court that an immediate end to DADT "will cause significant disruptions to the force in the short term and, in the long term, would likely undermine the effectiveness of any transition to accepting open service by gays and lesbians in the event the law is repealed or eliminated." The official, Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness Clifford Stanley, urged no change in the policy before completion of a Pentagon review, due December 1, and subsequent service member training and education efforts by the Defense Department.
Nonsense, replied lead Log Cabin attorney and White and Case partner Dan Woods, who called the government's claim of hardship "a red herring" in a Friday court filing.
"[T]he heart of the government's argument in its application [for a stay of the injunction] is to bemoan the administrative and rulemaking burden that would supposedly be placed on the military if the Court's injunction remains in place, and to plead that the current military Working Group be allowed to complete its 'orderly,' if ponderous, research and recommendations project without interference from courts fulfilling their constitutional function," Woods wrote. "Homosexual servicemembers are fighting and dying today in two wars for their fellow Americans' Constitutional rights; their own Constitutional rights should not be held hostage to an uncertain bureaucratic process that wants time to develop educational and training materials."
Woods added that allowing enforcement of DADT to continue "would have the effect of continuing to weaken our national security, a result the government should be ashamed to be seeking."
Update: Christian Berle, deputy executive director of the Log Cabin Republicans, which filed the suit, issued the following statement:
"At the same time the Pentagon was complying with the injunction against enforcing 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell,' President Obama's attorneys were making the argument that compliance would be impossible. Log Cabin Republicans believes that the Department of Justice is severely underestimating the professionalism of our men and women in uniform. The United States military is the most powerful, most adaptable armed force in the world. It has dealt with racial integration and greatly expanded opportunities for women, and has grown stronger because of it. Open service for gay and lesbian Americans will be no different."
Want more breaking equality news & trending entertainment stories?
Check out our NEW 24/7 streaming service: the Advocate Channel!
Download the Advocate Channel App for your mobile phone and your favorite streaming device!
From our Sponsors
Most Popular
Here Are Our 2024 Election Predictions. Will They Come True?
November 07 2023 1:46 PM
17 Celebs Who Are Out & Proud of Their Trans & Nonbinary Kids
November 30 2023 10:41 AM
Here Are the 15 Most LGBTQ-Friendly Cities in the U.S.
November 01 2023 5:09 PM
Which State Is the Queerest? These Are the States With the Most LGBTQ+ People
December 11 2023 10:00 AM
These 27 Senate Hearing Room Gay Sex Jokes Are Truly Exquisite
December 17 2023 3:33 PM
10 Cheeky and Homoerotic Photos From Bob Mizer's Nude Films
November 18 2023 10:05 PM
30 Steamy Photos of Folsom Street Fair 2023 Debauchery
October 15 2023 11:06 PM
42 Flaming Hot Photos From 2024's Australian Firefighters Calendar
November 10 2023 6:08 PM
These Are the 5 States With the Smallest Percentage of LGBTQ+ People
December 13 2023 9:15 AM
60 Burly Pics from Bearrison Street Fair 2022
October 08 2023 8:30 PM
Watch Now: Advocate Channel
Trending Stories & News
For more news and videos on advocatechannel.com, click here.
Trending Stories & News
For more news and videos on advocatechannel.com, click here.
Latest Stories
Prince William's aversion to spectacle created one — and might spawn a King Harry
March 22 2024 6:24 PM
Outrage after Oklahoma prosecutor declines charges in Nex Benedict bullying death
March 22 2024 5:21 PM
George Santos leaves Republican Party, will run for House seat as independent
March 22 2024 4:07 PM
Catherine, Princess of Wales, announces she has cancer
March 22 2024 2:57 PM
Pride
Yahoo FeedProhibition Wellness & revolutionizing self-care for all
March 22 2024 1:19 PM
Tennessee bill would permit anti-LGBTQ+ foster and adoptee parents
March 22 2024 11:54 AM
Plus
Yahoo Feed8 dating tips for gay men from a gay psychotherapist
March 22 2024 11:51 AM
Trans woman assailed during Kanye West's Rolling Loud set beats back 'bullies' (exclusive)
March 22 2024 11:34 AM