Obama says will end 'don't ask, don't tell' policy

[Guynemer]

Hmmm. I thought it was an executive order. Mea culpa.

Still. With a large majority in both houses of Congress, there is no reason he shouldn't be able to get this done, lickity-split.

[Wezil]

He's too busy Guy. Earning that Nobel was a back breaker.

[SlowwHand]

Gay rights advocates march on DC, divided on Obama

By BRETT ZONGKER, Associated Press Writer – 1 hr 6 mins ago

WASHINGTON – Thousands of gay and lesbian activists were expected to converge Sunday in a march from the White House to the Capitol, demanding that President Barack Obama keep his promises to push for civil rights protections from the federal government.

Some participants in the National Equality March woke up energized by Obama's blunt pledge to end the ban on gays serving openly in the military during a speech to the nation's largest gay rights group Saturday night. The president also said he would work to ban workplace discrimination based on sexual orientation and to give same-sex couples the same civil rights as straight couples.

"I'm here with you in that fight," Obama said. He acknowledged some had grown impatient that he wasn't pushing for changes faster but urged advocates to continue pressing him and Congress to act.

Obama's political energies have been focused on two wars, the economic crisis and health care reform, though he pledged "unwavering" commitment even as he wrestled with those problems.

March organizer Cleve Jones, creator of the AIDS Memorial Quilt and a protege of gay rights pioneer Harvey Milk, said Obama stopped short of explaining when he would make good on his promises.

The march was scheduled to begin at noon near the White House. Unlike the first march in 1979 and others in 1987, 1993 and 2000 that included celebrity performances and drew as many as 500,000 people, Sunday's event was driven by grassroots efforts and was expected to be more low-key.

Many organizers were outraged after the passage of California's Proposition 8, which canceled the right of gays to get married in the state, and over perceived slights by the Obama administration.

By Friday, 75 busloads of people had confirmed they would be traveling to Washington, said march co-director Robin McGehee.

For Lt. Dan Choi, the day began with a jog around Washington's memorials, calling cadence at 8 a.m. with fellow veterans and supporters before joining the march. Choi, a West Point graduate, Arabic speaker and Iraq war veteran, is facing discharge under the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy for revealing in March that he is gay.

"We have fought in battles to protect our country, and now we are fighting at home for equal and full protection under the law," he said.

On Saturday, he led a group of gay veterans in laying a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery to honor gay and lesbian soldiers who have died in the line of duty.

The weekend also included political training at several D.C. universities for young activists to learn how to build support and lobby lawmakers at home.

Other veteran activists doubted the march would accomplish much. They said the time and money would have been better spent working to persuade voters in Maine and Washington state, where the November ballot will include a measure that would overturn a bill granting same-sex couples many of the benefits of marriage.

A bill introducing same-sex marriage in the nation's capital also was introduced last week by the District of Columbia Council and is expected to easily pass.

Rep. Barney Frank, an openly gay member of Congress, said the marchers should be lobbying their lawmakers. He said the demonstrations are simply "an emotional release" that do little to pressure Congress.

"The only thing they're going to be putting pressure on is the grass," the Massachusetts Democrat said Friday.

Kind of a flippant attitude.

[Drake Tungsten]

Democrats have homosexuals, Republicans have the pro-lifers. There are others, but both camps basically just use some of their groups for votes.

JM

QFT

[Drake Tungsten]

Sloww is wrong, as usual. Rescind your mea culpa, Guy...

Obama's current position is that Congress has exclusive authority to lift the ban. However, in May 2009, a committee of military law experts at the University of California at Santa Barbara concluded that it is within the authority of the executive branch to discontinue the policy.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don%27t_ask,_don%27t_tell

It's very convenient for Obama to claim that its Congress' responsibility to end "don't ask, don't tell", but it isn't actually true.

[SlowwHand]

Congress passed it, per the article. If the military thinks they can end it, fine.
It's not like I oppose it.

[Theben]

Thread merge was pretty gawd awful.

[Imran Siddiqui]

President Barack Obama reaffirmed his campaign pledge to end the ban on homosexuals serving openly in the military in a speech Saturday, but offered no timetable or specifics for acting on that promise.

Of course he didn't.

And, yes, "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" can be rescinded by executive order, as Truman ended the segregation of blacks. As Commander in Chief, he can decide how the military accepts recruits.

As for priorities (what a weak ass cowardly Dem argument), there was a war going in 1964 as well, but President Johnson still found time to sign the Civil Rights Act. If you want to try to defend keeping gays as second class citizens because "other priorities", don't be surprised when others scoff at you.

[MrFun]

Whether you agree with his position or not, he's finally making good on a campaign promise.

How exactly? He offered no specifics on how he would end "don't ask, don't tell" and offered no timeframe on when the policy would be ended.

I feel uncomfortable whenever I agree with Drake on anything.

[MrFun]

And, yes, "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" can be rescinded by executive order, as Truman ended the segregation of blacks. As Commander in Chief, he can decide how the military accepts recruits.

If Obama simply uses his authority as commander-in-chief to unilaterally rescind the "don't ask, don't tell" policy, can not a succeeding president simply restore the bigoted policy?

Wouldn't a more permanent rescinding of "don't ask, don't tell" be made by passing such legislation through Congress in conjunction with a signed executive order by Obama?

[Kuciwalker]

why not do both.

[Ming]

Yawn... a March on Washington, President makes noises no different than his campaign promises... still hasn't done anything. People bash him... People make excuses for him... but in the end, nothing changes.

Looks like typical politics to me

[Drake Tungsten]

I feel uncomfortable whenever I agree with Drake on anything.

Makes sense. When someone is as consistently wrong on everything as you are, it must feel strange to finally get something right for a change.

[Imran Siddiqui]

why not do both.

That's too intense of thought for MrFun to consider .

[Kuciwalker]

Seriously. "We shouldn't change this horribly discriminatory practice, because someone later might change it back!"