"Don't ask, don't tell" fight resumes next Thursday
Published: February 5, 2010
Last week, following the announcement of the Pentagon's plan to eventually do away with "don't ask, don't tell," Sen. Carl Levin said he planned on holding a series of hearings before the Senate Armed Services Committee on the issue to gather opinions.
The first of those will be next Thursday morning. Staff officials have not yet announced exactly who will be participating, but the panel will include outside experts and possibly veterans groups to offer their perspective.
In 2008, when the House Armed Services Committee held its hearing on the law prohibiting openly gay troops from serving in the ranks, representatives from the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network and the Center for Military Readiness sparred on their panel.
This week, both the American Legion and VFW publicly voiced their support for "don't ask, don't tell" (and the folks at AMVETS said too many questions still linger to support a repeal) while VoteVets.org endorsed a repeal.
Levin has pledged to bring in active duty personnel to offer their assessment of the policy, and has promised that service chiefs due before the committee for budget hearings later this month will also face questions on whether gay troops should be allowed to serve openly.
[PHOTO: Defense Department]
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