Senate Hearings on DADT this Fall

by: Brandon Friedman

Mon Jul 27, 2009 at 08:45:00 AM EDT


While the topic of the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" law will come up this week at the confirmation hearing for three appointees to the Departments of the Army and Navy, it will likely only be a preview for the real thing later this fall:

The Daily Beast has learned that the Senate, prompted by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, will hold hearings on "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"--a first since 1993, despite Obama's campaign promises.

After determining she didn't have enough votes in support of a temporary suspension of the ban on gays in the military, Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand tells The Daily Beast she has secured the commitment of Senate Armed Services Committee to hold hearings on "Don't Ask Don't Tell" this fall. It would be the first formal re-assessment of the policy since Congress passed it into law in 1993.

A statement from the Gillibrand's office, shared exclusively with The Daily Beast, notes that "265 men and women have been unfairly dismissed from the Armed Forces since President Barack Obama took office."

That's big news.  This is a slow-moving process, but it's moving in the right direction.

Brandon Friedman :: Senate Hearings on DADT this Fall
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