Skip to main content

My News-Journal Letter to the Editor on DADT Repeal

Image
By
Shortly after the Senate DADT hearings in early February, I contacted my Senator, Kay Bailey Hutchison to urge her support for repeal.

My letter to the editor in today's Longview News-Journal has Hutchison's response to me and my comments on her position:

Sunday, March 7: Supports repeal of Don't Ask policy

LONGVIEW NEWS JOURNAL

I recently wrote a letter to U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison urging her to help repeal the military's ban on gay men and lesbians openly serving in the military — the so-called Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy.

I hoped that as a member of the Senate's Armed Services Committee, and someone with a reputation as a fair-minded legislator, Hutchison would be open to studying a repeal of the policy. To my surprise, Hutchison responded that she flatly opposes a repeal because "the Department of Defense has testified before Congress that the current policy has served the military well."

Apparently, Hutchison is unaware that Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Adm. Michael Mullen have testified before her committee that the time has come to end the military's discrimination against gay and lesbian service members. Former Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairmen Gen. Colin Powell and Gen. John Shalikashvili have also called for ending the ban.

Furthermore, Gen. Ray Odierno, the top U.S. military commander in Iraq has voiced his support for a repeal. Even Vice President Dick Cheney, a former Secretary of Defense, has indicated he believes gay men and lesbians should be allowed to serve openly and honestly in the military.

I agree with Admiral Mullen that repealing this discriminatory policy is a simple matter of integrity and fairness. Gay and lesbian Americans have served in the military throughout our nation's history. They have fought and died, and continue to die, for the freedoms we enjoy in this country today.

If even the uniformed and civilian leadership at the Pentagon support repealing the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy, why can't the senior senator from Texas do the same?

- Patrick Franklin, Longview

****

Note: I have reinserted paragraph breaks which the newspaper, for some reason, did not.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Michigan: Announcement of Calvin College board's stand on homosexuality, same-sex marriage expected soon

By Ameriqueer
Big news out of Michigan, surely the Professors (who tend to be very progressive) can't wait to find out - MLive.com : "Calvin College professors will find out Monday whether the college’s governing board will withdraw a controversial memo ordering them to follow Christian Reformed Church teachings against homosexuality and same-sex marriage. President Gaylen Byker will update faculty on board discussions that took place over the weekend by the Board of Trustees, including a decision on the memo, spokesman Phil de Haan said Saturday."
Post a Comment
Read more

In anti-gay attack, AIM falsely asserts "pedophile" Jennings was "teaching 14-year-old boys" about sexual practices | Media Matters for America

By Ameriqueer
In anti-gay attack, AIM falsely asserts "pedophile" Jennings was "teaching 14-year-old boys" about sexual practices | Media Matters for America : "In attacking the media for allegedly insufficient coverage of Obama administration official Kevin Jennings, a blogger for Accuracy in Media, which purports to 'set the record straight on important issues that have received slanted coverage' -- and which has a record of antagonism toward gays -- smeared Jennings as a 'pedophile' and falsely claimed that '[v]ideos have surfaced of Jennings teaching 14-year-old boys the dangerous sexual practice of 'fisting,' and discussing with them the particulars of oral sex.' In fact, Jennings did not conduct that seminar and, in fact, reportedly criticized it when he became aware of its content." AIM is a crock. They're nothing more than Republican mouthpieces.
Post a Comment
Read more

NEW BILERICO GUEST POST: What the GLAAD Network Report Means

By Ameriqueer
MY NEWEST CONTRIBUTION TO BILERICO; PLEASE VISIT BILERICO.COM FOR THE ENTIRE POST! Yesterday, GLAAD released its Network Responsibility Index report for 2009, ranking the top broadcast and cable networks on their LGBT inclusivity in programming. ABC led the broadcast networks this year with depictions like Ugly Betty 's gay Ken-doll Marc, played by Michael Urie, among other depictions on other shows. HBO led the cable networks with shows like gay-created True Blood , No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency , and Big Love ; with over 42% of programming being LGBT inclusive. We're not surprised that there were so many cable networks that ranked high on the index; #2 Showtime's programming consisted of 24% LGBT-inclusive programming, #3 TNT dedicated 19% of its hours to LGBT-inclusive content, #4 MTV 17% (really, only 17?), and #5 Lifetime—the in-denial fourth gay network—had 14%. This was all while the Network's rankings topped out at ABC's 24% and went down from there to C...
1 comment
Read more