Inhofe's DADT Remarks Dangerous To Gay & Lesbians In Military

by Rhonda J Mangus | May 14, 2010 at 02:05 am

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Inhofe Implies Soldiers Unwilling To Fight For Gays & Lesbians In The Line Of Fire [Video]

Against repealing the U.S. military policy "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" (DADT) Oklahoma Senator and Armed Services Committee member James Inhofe implies in a recent interview on Focal Point, an American Family Association radio show, that soldiers in combat were unwilling to fight for gay and lesbian soldiers also serving in the line of fire.

Inhofe's DADT Remarks

"For those of us — and I’m one of them — who have gone through the military, gone through basic training, and you stop and think — it just doesn’t make any sense. Second of all, it’s just not working. You have women, men, then you have a third group to deal with, and they’re not equipped to do that.

"And you know — you hear the stories all the time. A military guy — I happen to be Army, and Army and Marines always feel that when we’re out there, we’re not doing it for the flag or the country; we’re doing it for the guy in the next foxhole. And that would dramatically change that."

Selective Hearing By Inhofe

Inhofe may be hearing stories all the time that lead him to believe that by repealing DADT "...doing it for the guy in the next foxhole...would dramatically change that.", but a recent campaign launched by Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN) tells a much different story.

Stories from the Frontlines: Letters to President Barack Obama. The campaign is dedicated to ending the U.S. Military policy "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" (DADT) and was launched in response to the National Defense Authorization Bill (S. 1390) which failed to include repeal of DADT.

SLDN states an urgent need for congressional action and presidential leadership at this critical point in the fight to repeal DADT. As of April 30th, fifteen votes are needed on the Senate Armed Services Committee to include repeal of DADT in the Defense Authorization bill (S.1390).

Every weekday morning as we approach the markup of the Defense Authorization bill in the Senate and House Armed Services Committees, SLDN and a coalition of voices supporting repeal, will share an open letter to the President from a person impacted by this discriminatory law.

How You Can Help Make This Happen