May 04, 2007News: US Senator McCain Calls Gay Troops an 'Intolerable Risk'
By vanrozenheim
(Washington, USA) - US Senator John McCain, a candidate for the 2008 Republican presidential nomination, has reiterated his support for the military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" ban on lesbian, gay and bisexual service members. In an April 16 letter to Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN), McCain says the law, passed in 1993, "unambiguously maintains that open homosexuality within the military services presents an intolerable risk to morale, cohesion and discipline."
Senator McCain goes on to incorrectly assert that the U.S. Supreme Court "has ruled that the military may constitutionally discharge a service member for overt homosexual behavior."
"Senator McCain's comments are out of step with the overwhelming majority of the American people, and out of touch with the best interests of our armed forces," said Sharra E. Greer, SLDN's director of law and policy. "'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' prevents our military from recruiting and retaining the best and brightest Americans, and undermines our country's ability to assemble the strongest fighting force possible. Now, more than ever, elected officials should be primarily concerned about military readiness. Senator McCain's defense of this counter-productive law is disrespectful to the more than 65,000 lesbian and gay service members on duty today."
In his letter, Senator McCain says that, "I believe polarization of personnel and breakdown of unit effectiveness is too high a price to pay for well-intentioned but misguided efforts to elevate the interests of a minority of homosexual service members above those of their units. Most importantly, the national security of the United States, not to mention the lives of our men and women in uniform, are put at grave risk by policies detrimental to the good order and discipline which so distinguish America’s Armed Services." McCain, who voted in favor of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" in 1993, says "I remain opposed to the open expression of homosexuality in the U.S. military."
A complete copy of Senator McCain's letter is available online at www.sldn.org.
