Source: McClatchy Newspapers, Politico, Washington Post, Stars and Stripes, New York Times, Marine Corps Times

The joint chiefs: Gen. Casey, Adm. Roughead, Gen. Schwartz, Gen. Conway
Sen. Joseph Lieberman, said this week that he will soon introduce a bill in the senate to repeal the ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ law, but warned that full reversal of the existing policy is unlikely this year.
“I’m not kidding myself,” Lieberman told reporters Tuesday, according to Politico. “Of course, I’d like to get it done this year, but it’s going to be hard.”
Lieberman also said that that Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.), chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, has been supportive of including “a moratorium on enforcement” of DADT in the defense authorization bill.
But top officers from four branches of the military told Levin’s committee and its House counterpart this week to avoid changing the ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy until a Pentagon study is completed late this year.
Secretary of Defense Robert Gates and by Adm. Mike Mullan, the joint chiefs chairman, announced at a senate hearing earlier this month that they’ve ordered the study which will consider the effects of repealing the policy, and will report on implementation issues.
Mullan expressed strong support for repeal of the policy. “I cannot escape being troubled by the fact that we have in place a policy which forces young men and women to lie about who they are in order to defend their fellow citizens,” Mullan said.
Gates appointed an Army general and the Pentagon’s top lawyer to lead the review team.
Gen. George W Casey Jr, the army chief of staff, told the Senate Armed Services Committee that Congress should not consider any changes to the DADT law until the Pentagon assessment is complete. He told the senators that he’s opposed even to a moratorium on dismissals pending results of the study, Washington Post reports.
Earlier this week, however, a California academic think tank that has advocated for repeal of DADT, released a comprehensive new study on how other countries have handled removing official bans on gay and lesbians in their military services.
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