Don’t Ask Don’t Tell near an end
US President Barack Obama has signed certification for repeal of “don’t ask, don’t tell” and sent it to Congress, according to reports this morning.
The Advocate reports a 60-day waiting period follows before the policy is finally dropped, meaning that DADT would no longer be enforced on Sept 20.
A recent order from the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals already bars the military from further discharges and investigations under the policy.
The chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Senator Carl Levin, cheered the certification and looked ahead to next steps.
“Today’s certification for all practical purposes marks the end of a discriminatory policy,” Levin said in a statement.
“There is no way to justify a policy that requires our young men and women in uniform to lie about who they are in order to defend their fellow citizens.
“Sixty days from now, these service members will be able to serve openly, without living in constant fear of being outed and kicked out of the military.”
