Congress Announces Legislation to Repeal 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell'

[Scooter24]

February 24, 2005

WASHINGTON, DC –Congressional lawmakers today announced legislation to repeal “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” the military’s ban on lesbian, gay and bisexual personnel. The Military Readiness Enhancement Act is scheduled to be introduced in the House of Representatives by Rep. Marty Meehan (D-MA) on March 2nd. The proposal is already supported by a bi-partisan coalition of Congressional representatives, including Reps. John Conyers (D-MI) and Jerrold Nadler (D-NY) among others.
Announcement of the bill follows release of a new Government Accounting Office (GAO) report analyzing “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.” The GAO report conservatively estimates the gay ban has cost at least $191 million since its inception in 1993. The report’s financial estimate, however, includes only costs associated with recruiting and training enlistees to replace those discharged under the ban. The GAO analysis does not include costs associated with discharging officers or the nearly 800 specialists with critical skills who have been fired because of their sexual orientation. Administrative costs associated with discharges are also not included in the GAO analysis.

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“Congress and the American people now have the benefit of more than a decade of evidence indicting ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,’” said Osburn. “Every American in every community benefits from the talents and skills of the more than 65,000 lesbian, gay and bisexual service members on duty in our armed forces. Today’s legislation will ensure their service is honored and give our military the opportunity to grow its pool of the best and brightest our nation has to offer, regardless of sexual orientation. ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ is costly, unnecessary and hurts our national defense. Congress should approve this important legislation before one more service member is fired because of a law that flies in the face of our nation’s best interests.”

“Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” adopted by Congress in 1993, is a prohibition on lesbian, gay and bisexual service personnel. Under the law, military personnel cannot reveal their sexual orientation to anyone, including family members, without risking expulsion from the armed forces.

http://www.sldn.org/templates/press/record.html?record=1910
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I also posted this in the GD: Politics forum. :)

[applegrove]

1. I knew it - neocons like the homosexuals. And you can vote & fight

in wars but you cannot get web. ***holes!