Fleming Comments on Don't Ask Don't Tell Repeal

Statement

Congressman John Fleming, M.D. released the following statement today after the House of Representatives voted to repeal the statute which underlies the military's "Don't Ask Don't Tell" policy.

"To date, the Administration has failed to show how changing the current policy would improve the readiness and combat effectiveness of our Armed Forces. As a former Naval Officer and member of the House Armed Service Committee, I believe lawmakers who are considering changes to any Defense Department policy must rigorously apply the test of whether enacting such changes are in the best interest of the warfighter in harm's way. In this case, the evidence clearly suggests that it isn't.

"Additionally, the majority of the military service chiefs, responsible for the day-to-day readiness of our forces, have been surprisingly outspoken in their disagreement with the conclusion made by the Defense Department's biased assessment that the short-term risk to military effectiveness is low. To the contrary -- the service chiefs have expressed serious concerns that implementing any changes to the policy given current military deployments exposes the force to increased risk levels, especially to forward deployed combat units. I agree and believe this ill-conceived policy is being foisted on our troops."

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