Obama Signs Historic "Don't Ask" Repeal Bill
President Barack Obama signs the Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010, Wednesday, Dec. 22, 2010, at the Interior Department in Washington.
/ APUpdated 5:13 p.m. Eastern Time
President Obama signed historic legislation to allow repeal of the 17-year-old "don't ask, don't tell" policy banning gay men and women from serving openly in the military on Wednesday morning, hailing the bill as one that will "strengthen our national security and uphold the ideals that our fighting men and women risk their lives to defend."
"No longer will our country be denied the service of thousands of patriotic Americans who were forced the leave the military, regardless of their skills, no matter the zeal or exemplary performance because they happen to be gay," he said. "No longer will tens of thousands of Americans in uniform be asked to live a lie."
The president described the signing as "the right thing to do for our military," as well as "the right thing to do, period."
Passage of the bill represents a victory for Mr. Obama, who promised to end the policy as a candidate, as well as the gay rights activists who crowded into an Interior Department auditorium for the event. Many have harshly criticized the Obama administration over the past two years for what they see as a failure to move aggressively on gay rights issues.
What's Next for the Gay Rights Movement?
The activists cheered the president wildly when he emerged onstage, breaking out into a chant of "Yes, we can," a phrase whose use has faded -- in conjunction with the enthusiasm of many in Mr. Obama's liberal base -- since the election. One yelled, "thank you, Mr. President."
"I am just overwhelmed," Mr. Obama said. "This is a very good day."
The president told the audience that men and women in the military have to sacrifice a lot, and "none of them should have to sacrifice their integrity as well."
He told a story of a gay soldier named Andy Lee from World War II who saved a soldier whose son was in the audience for the signing. The soldier Lee saved, Private Lloyd Corwin, "knew that valor and sacrifice are no more limited by sexual orientation than by race or by gender or by religion or by creed," Mr. Obama said.
The president thanked the lawmakers who backed repeal and joined him onstage for the signing, including Democratic Leaders Rep. Nancy Pelosi and Sen. Harry Reid, GOP Sen. Susan Collins and Independent Sen. Joe Lieberman. He hailed passage as a bipartisan victory in the wake of a Senate vote on repeal that attracted eight Republicans.
He also commended military leaders, including Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Admiral Mike Mullen, the latter of whom said early in the repeal effort that he personally believed the "don't ask" policy was wrong.
"I'm confident history will remember well the courage, the vision, of Secretary Gates, of Admiral Mike Mullen who spoke from the heart and said what he believed was right," said Mr. Obama.
Even though the repeal has now been signed into law, it will still be some time before it is completely implemented. Mr. Obama and military leaders must certify that implementation will not harm combat readiness. After that, a 60-day waiting period goes into effect before implementation can move forward. (A last minute Republican effort to kill repeal by mandating that the service chiefs also offer certification - including Marine Corps chief General James Amos, who has expressed opposition to the policy - failed Tuesday night.)
Gates has stressed that the military must have the necessary time to implement the policy effectively, and the military will now move to train troops and write regulations on issues like dealing with objections to barracks assignments in advance of the change. The Pentagon is being deliberately vague about how long the entire procedure would take, but at one point Gates said it could take up to a year.
The president insisted that service chiefs are committed to implementing the policy "swiftly and efficiently."
"We are not going to be dragging our feet to get this done," he said.
Mr. Obama urged gay members of the military to remember that the policy has not been implemented, an implied recommendation that they do not come out before repeal goes through. Even before implementation, however, the military is expected to continue its de facto moratorium on expelling troops because of their sexuality that has been in effect for months.
He expressed gratitude to those who had fought for repeal, including members of the military who had been expelled for being gay -- who he encouraged to re-enlist -- and also spoke directly to gay men and women still serving.
"For a long time, your service has demanded a particular kind of sacrifice," he said. "You've been asked to carry the added burden of secrecy and isolation and all the while you have put your lives on the line for the freedoms and privileges of citizenship that are not fully granted to you."
He said gay soldiers had carried such a burden throughout American history.
"You're not the first to have carried this burden," he said. "For while today marks the end of a particular struggle that has lasted almost two decades, this is a moment more than two centuries in the making. There will never be a full accounting of the heroism of gay Americans in service to this country. Their service has been obscured in history. But at every turn, every crossroads in our past, we know gay Americans fought just as hard, gave just as much to protect this nation and the ideals for which it stands. There can be little doubt."
The president added that concerns about changes to the policy are understandable, but not insurmountable.
"Now, with any change there's some apprehension," Mr. Obama said. "That's natural. But as Commander in Chief, I am certain that we can effect this transition in a way that only strengthens our military readiness and that people will look back on this moment and wonder, why was ever a source of controversy in the first place?"
"For we are not a nation that says 'don't ask, don't tell,'" he concluded. "We are a nation that says out of many we are one. We are a nation that welcomes the service of every patriot. We are a nation that believes that all men and women are created equal. Those are the ideals that generations have fought for, those are the ideals that we uphold today, and now it is my honor to sign this bill into law."
During a press conference late Wednesday afternoon, Mr. Obama was asked about his opposition to gay marriage in light of his signing the repeal bill. He stood by his opposition, saying he still supports only "strong civil unions," but added that his feelings are "evolving."
He said that "this is going to be an issue that is not unique to the military, this is an issue that extends to all of our society and I think we're all going to have to have a conversation about it."
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HEY! Come on Bruce! jump in the fox hole with me! we can be captured together!
NO BRUCE! JUMP IN WITH ME! LOOK OUT! HERE COMES THE ENEMY! OH! NO WAIT! IT'S OUR FRIENDLY GAY GERMAN TROOPS! NO WORRIES! NOW--JUST THINK WE ALL COULD HAVE MADE FRIENDS WITH THE ENEMY EARLIER AND SAVED A LOT OF TROUBLE IF? WE ALL HAD THIS POLICY ON BOTH SIDES!IN WW11--BUT! ESPECIALLY FOR THE FRENCH IN WW1 --WOW! AMAZING! WAS NOT THIS ALL THE DOWN FALL OF THE ROMAN TIMES! WE ARE FOLLOWING THEIR PATH AS A SOCIETY AND A MILITARY PART OF IT TOO! DO WHAT YOU WANT --YOU HAVE THE RIGHT!
BUT! LOOK FORWARD TO YOUR DOWN FALL AS A SOCIETY! TOO! WE HAVE SEEN THIS ALL THROUGH OUT HISTORY IN MANY CIVILIZATIONS!
GRAPES --WINE--ORGIES! ETC.!
OUR SOCIETIES DRUG USAGE!
CRIME! THE MILITARY WEAKNESS!
NOT JUST WITH THIS BUT! MANY OTHER THINGS TOO!
JUST LIKE THE ROMANS TOO!
THE POWER OF THE SENATE IN ROME AND THE CEASER!
IN CHARGE! CONGRESS TOO!
ALL THIS AMIDSTS THE FINANCIAL TURMOIL!
AND NO MORE TRUE MANUFACTURING ETC.! ETC.!
AND THE TURMOIL IN OTHER COUNTRIES NEAR THE BORDER
OF ITALY-ROME
MEXICO! CENTRAL AMERICA, SOUTH AMERICA
CUBA, HAITI ETC.!
ONLY CANADA IS STRONG WITH SOME THINGS!
BUT THAN THE FRENCH WANT QUEBEC PROVINCE ETC.!
AND SO ON AND SO FOURTH!
WOW! HISTORY REPEATS ITSELF!
LOOK FORWARD TO MANY OTHER CHANGES TOO!
BUT THAN A METEOR IS COMING CLOSE BY --SOON!
BIRDFLIGHT
Don't you get a kick out of these jackasses who seem to think that their jibberish is made much more important by typing it in all caps?
1) Joining the military is a privilege.
2) Becoming a military member, one has to accept / maintain a certain level of personal and professional conduct.
DTDT came about largely because too many service members had major issues with #2.
All Repealing DTDT really did is open the US government to a mountain of litigation of policy changes. Hell as it stands right now, you can be sure that all of the ambulance chasers are switching gears to actively pursue cases suing the US government on the behalf of their clients. Meanwhile the military will end up spending a ton of money ensuring gay service members are treated "fairly" by supplying with the separate accommodations.
So is this a win-win for all parties involved?
Not really.
The only folks who've won are the liberal groups that haven't the foresight to envision the profound consequences this change will have on our "politically correct" society.
Everyone else will be caught in the middle...
If an unintended consequence is that Billy-Bob and his band of ignorant evangelical friends gets booted out of the military, so be it.
The Sgt coat-tails are getting alittle dirty, you might want to think about getting off.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
anymore questions about gender?
anymore questions
homosexuality being a genetic disposition?
---
I'm done with your coy game.
We both know who you are and what you were posting last night.
You are much more transparent than you even imagine.
If you run this kind of game with your husband, and I have no reason to think it's something you just developed for our benefit, I really pity him.
Good night.
by ConcernedArmyWife December 22, 2010 9:38 PM EST
What "horrors" would that be?
by ConcernedArmyWife December 22, 2010 9:20 PM EST
Okay we can take to road of "I didnt use those exact terms so you can't take it that way".
What did I say would happen to the troops if this was passed?
I didnt get on here and debate the bill being passed. I said that I was okay with him saying that it was "the right thing to do, period."
---
Not even close.
You started THAT line today.
I'm referring to all your "axious", to say the very least, posts last night as is slow.
What "horrors" would that be?
by ConcernedArmyWife December 22, 2010 9:20 PM EST
Okay we can take to road of "I didnt use those exact terms so you can't take it that way".
Sorry, no fear of my husband serving with gays.
---
Do tell.....
And all your posts as to the "horrors", etc. that will result from the repeal were expressions of what, exactly?
You may not have use the specific word "horrors" but you know what I mena.
Don't play coy with me.
I have you figured 6 ways from Sunday by now.....
But he is now too my of a coward to join again.
---
Yeah.
Not a coward for two enlistments but now I am, eh?
Brilliant.