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Gates & Mullen Firmly Support ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ Repeal

Adm. Michael Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, is perhaps the barometric view here. Mullen said the heads of the military services did not yet

Jul 31, 202038.4K Shares800.3K Views
Adm. Michael Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, is perhaps the barometric view here. Mullen said the heads of the military services did not yet have firm military advice for the president. But then, in a hearing just getting underway in the Senate Armed Services Committee, Mullen said that it was his “personal view” that “allowing gays and lesbians to serve openly would be the right thing to do.” It comes down to “integrity,” the nation’s top military officer said.
Robert Gates, the secretary of defense, vowed to proceed in a “thorough” and “deliberate” manner to repeal the law over the next year. He’s creating an advisory panel on the issue. It will be chaired by two Pentagon luminaries: Jeh Johnson, the department’s general counsel, and Gen. Carter Ham, commander of Army forces in Europe.
Mullen, however, is the one who has set the tone for the uniformed military here. He just made repealing DADT kosher.
Update: I initially misheard Mullen as calling it the “right view.” I corrected the quote; apologies.
Paula M. Graham

Paula M. Graham

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