Mar 12, 2007

John McCain supports Don't Ask, Don't Tell

At a NYC forum last week Senator John McCain came out in favor of keeping the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy.

"I recently had a conversation with some other military leaders on this issue and their point to me was ‘It’s working, so leave it alone. Generally, overall, it’s working.’ I don’t think there’s any doubt that there are evolving attitudes in America about many issues, including this one, but every military leader that I talk to, I say ‘Should we change it?’ They say, ‘It’s working.’ And right now we’ve got the best military we’ve ever had - the most professional, best trained, equipped and the bravest. And so I think it’s logical to leave this issue alone. I really do."

McCain doesn't name the "military leaders" but he probably isn't referring to Former General and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff John Shalikashvili, who came out against the policy in January, or former Secretary of Defense William Cohen, who made a similar statement later that month.

Said Shalikashvili: "I now believe that if gay men and lesbians served openly in the United States military, they would not undermine the efficacy of the armed forces. Our military has been stretched thin by our deployments in the Middle East, and we must welcome the service of any American who is willing and able to do the job."

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