Latest Don't Ask, Don't Tell Stories

Exercises Executive Power Five Times While Claiming No Authority to End Gay Firings SANTA BARBARA, Calif., Aug. 10 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- President Barack Obama's use of signing statements -- a presidential authorization to ignore portions of Congressional law -- is being criticized by scholars who study gay rights for directly contradicting his defense of ongoing gay troop discharges. The President has refused to intervene to stop the firing of gay troops, citing the rationale that the...

LOS ANGELES, July 27 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- A working group on the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy comprised of retired general officers, scholars and a former member of Congress issued a statement today in response to inaccurate or misleading statements made about the policy by President Barack Obama, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates, Rep. Patrick Murphy (D-PA), and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Mike Mullen. The DADT Working Group is a collaboration of the Williams...

SANTA BARBARA, Calif., July 6 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Palm Center today released a legal memo that outlines what steps the Secretary of Defense can take to modify the enforcement of "don't ask, don't tell" while the President works with Congress to repeal the law. The document serves as a follow-up to the Palm Center's heavily debated May study explaining options for executive action that could halt all discharges even without an act of Congress. Previous to its release, most...

WASHINGTON, July 2 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy (D-PA), a veteran of the Iraq war, the Human Rights Campaign and Servicemembers United, will announce the launch of a national tour urging the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," the policy banning gay and lesbian servicemembers from serving openly, at a National Press Club Newsmakers press conference at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, July 8, in the Zenger Room, 13th floor, National Press Building, 529 14th St., N.W., Washington,...

Pentagon Studies Ways to Relax Enforcement as First Step; Impact on Troops Would be Minimal SANTA BARBARA, Calif., July 1 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In the wake of yesterday's unexpected Pentagon announcement about gays in the military, experts say the "don't ask, don't tell" policy may be on the brink of irreversible change that would speed up its demise. After speaking with President Obama last week, Defense Secretary Robert Gates has asked military lawyers to explore how to modify...

WASHINGTON, June 23 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Congressman Chaka Fattah (D-PA), a longtime supporter of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) civil rights, is advocating for two new Congressional initiatives that challenge discrimination against homosexuals in employment and in the military. Rep. Fattah and 76 colleagues in the House of Representatives sent a letter to President Obama Monday calling for an immediate end to enforcement of the Don't Ask Don't Tell (DADT) rule that...

SLDN Also Joins Call for Executive Option SANTA BARBARA, Calif., June 16 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has called on President Obama to sign an executive order suspending the "don't ask, don't tell" policy, according to the Advocate magazine. Referring to the repeal of the ban, Reid told Advocate reporter Kerry Eleveld that, "My hope is that it can be done administratively." Eleveld added that, "A Democratic aide later clarified that Reid was speaking...

Growing Chorus Calling For Swift Presidential Action SANTA BARBARA, Calif., June 10 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The New York Times editorial page has called on President Obama to consider signing an executive order suspending the military's gay ban, urging him to "see if there is indeed any action he could take on his own." Referring to Obama's stroke-of-the-pen authority to issue stop-loss orders which prevent service members from leaving the military, the Times states, "How much better...

HRC Joins Emerging Consensus that Obama Should Sign Executive Order SANTA BARBARA, Calif., June 5 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Human Rights Campaign, the largest gay rights group in the country, has joined a growing number of other advocacy organizations calling on President Barack Obama to sign an executive order suspending "don't ask, don't tell." Asked by Chris Matthews on MSNBC's Hardball last night whether he believes Obama has the authority to sign such an order and whether he...

Pressure on White House Mounts; Scholars Question Administration's Inaction SANTA BARBARA, Calif., May 18 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In the face of delays by President Obama on his pledge to overturn the "don't ask, don't tell" policy, a growing chorus by scholars, activists, military veterans, and the public is calling on the White House to end the ban immediately. Over the weekend, a petition was signed by over 84,000 people asking Obama to suspend the gay ban immediately and stop the...