March 4th, 2010:

The Progress Report wrote:

Smearing The Rule Of Law

From:The Progress Report [progress@americanprogressaction.org]
Sent: Thursday, March 04, 2010 8:24 AM
To: Tom
Subject: Smearing The Rule Of Law

UNDER THE RADAR

CIVIL RIGHTS — LIEBERMAN INTRODUCES SENATE MEASURE TO REPEAL ‘DON’T ASK, DON’T TELL’: Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) introduced a bill in the Senate Wednesday that would repeal the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT) ban on gay men and women serving openly in the military within 13 months of enactment. “Today we introduce legislation to stop the prohibition of men and women based on their sexual orientation in the American armed forces,” Lieberman said. “[We] offer in its place a policy of equal opportunity to serve and defend our country.” Lieberman introduced the measure along withSens. Mark Udall (D-CO), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Roland Burris (D-IL), and Carl Levin (D-MI), chairman of the Senate Armed Services committee. Udall wrote yesterday that Lieberman’s bill would shift the Pentagon DADT policy review from “considering whether to repeal” DADT to instead focusing on an assumed repeal. While Lieberman introduced the bill with 13 Democratic cosponsors, the proposal will likely have wide Democratic support, Levin admitted that enactment of the measure must overcome Republican obstructionism and surmount a 60-vote threshold in the Senate. That leaves Democrats with a few options for working toward a DADT repeal this year. Levin said he is “very much inclined to attempt to get a [DADT discharge] moratorium” in this year’s defense authorization bill if Republicans won’t support Lieberman’s proposal. Levin also said that if Democrats could add Lieberman’s proposal to his committee’s version of the defense bill, “opponents would have to amass 60 votes to strip the amendmentfrom the authorization — a virtual impossibility — instead of forcing Democrats to collect 60 votes for a standalone bill.” Levin said the bill’s passage would contribute to the military’s readiness and strength. When gays and lesbians are prohibited from serving openly, “[I]t denies us…men and women who can contribute to the defense of their country,” Levin said.

Can’t the President End it?

As a stopgap measure, and instead of a moratorium amendment to the defense authorization bill, wouldn’t it be much easier for President Obama to issue an executive order to the military to place a moratorium on prosecutions for those who are awaiting discharge or other actions due to violations of the DADT rule? The executive order could halt the discharge process for gay and lesbian servicemen/women, sending them back to their units to serve and simultaneously stop any future actions for acts of homosexuality committed by them or any other servicemen found to be homosexual, since just being homosexual is a violation of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell and prohibits them from serving.

The ending of DADT shouldn’t be so hard.

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