Pentagon Releases DADT Repeal Plans

The Pentagon has finalized its plans to repeal the policy barring gay and lesbian troops from serving openly in the military, releasing the months-long plan on Friday.

Alexander Nicholson, executive director of Servicemembers United, said in a statement Friday that the plan is a "comprehensive and deliberate path" to repeal the ban. He added, "In typical military fashion, the plan is quite thorough and some steps may seem unnecessary or redundant, but overall we believe this plan continues to show a good faith effort on the part of the Department of Defense to swiftly move forward with training, certification, and repeal."

As reported earlier, the training process will occur in three tiers: first military chaplains, lawyers, and civilian public affairs officers, then commanding officers, and finally rank and file troops. The outline released Friday shows more information about a comprehensive effort, with constant updates being sent to President Barack Obama, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. Michael Mullen, among others. The progress reports from a Repeal Implementation Team will begin on March 1.

The plan also shows that the team will monitor and enforce the repeal after it is certified.

Earlier this week, the Navy released a time line of dates, showing that all training should be complete by June 30.