White House issues statement in support of ‘Don’t ask’ repeal

The White House on Tuesday morning lent its support to congressional efforts to repeal the ban on openly gay people serving in the military.

{mosads}As the clock is winding down on a key procedural vote in the Senate that could determine the fate of a massive defense policy bill, the White House issued a statement of administration policy in support of a provision in the defense bill that would repeal the ban known as “Don’t ask, don’t tell.”

The Obama administration supports the provision “as it would allow for completion of the comprehensive review, enable the Department of Defense to assess the results of the review, and ensure that the implementation of the repeal is consistent with the standards of military readiness, effectiveness, unit cohesion, recruiting and retention,” the Office of Management and Budget wrote in the statement. “Such an approach recognizes the critical need to allow our military and their families the full opportunity to inform and shape the implementation process through a thorough understanding of their concerns, insights and suggestions.”

Obama had made a campaign pledge to repeal the Clinton-era law. Under the provision in the 2011 defense authorization bill, the repeal will not be implemented until the Pentagon finishes its review of how it would impact the military. President Barack Obama, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Adm. Mike Mullen must first certify it can be achieved in a manner consistent with the military’s standards of readiness, effectiveness, unit cohesion and recruitment and retention.

It is unclear whether the Democratic leadership has the 60 votes necessary to overcome Republican objections over bringing up the defense authorization bill for Senate debate. The test for the Democratic leadership comes at 2:15 p.m. Tuesday when the Senate is scheduled to vote on cutting off debate on the motion to proceed to the defense bill.