Army Chief of Staff Gen. George Casey informed the Senate Armed Services Committee he has "serious concerns" about repealing the law in the midst of war. "We just don't know the impacts on readiness and military effectiveness," Casey testified.
A somewhat softer note was sounded by Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton A. Schwartz, who said, "This is not the time to perturb the force that is, at the moment, stretched by demands in Iraq and Afghanistan and elsewhere without careful deliberation."
Adm. Gary Roughead, chief of naval operations, testified that he endorsed a "study" of the issue because "only with that information can we discuss the force that we have, not someone else's." He also resisted a "freeze" on discharges for homosexual behavior, citing duty to "the families that support the force."
The straightest shooting of all was done by Gen. James Conway, the commandant of the Marine Corps. In testimony to the House Armed Services Committee on Feb. 24, he said, "Unless we can strip away the emotion, the agendas and the politics and ask ... 'Do we somehow enhance the war-fighting capabilities of the United States Marine Corps by allowing homosexuals to openly serve?' then we haven't addressed it from the correct perspective." Then he reloaded.
After observing that proponents of repeal have failed to produce any evidence that openly homosexual individuals' serving in uniform will improve combat readiness, Conway unequivocally stated: "At this point ... my best military advice to this committee, to the secretary and to the president would be to keep the law such as it is."
Whether Mr. Obama and his allies in Congress will heed this wise advice from a war fighter remains to be seen. Buck McKeon, the ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee, has cautioned, "Before the president or special interests force a change in the policy or law, Congress deserves to see from the services concrete, in-depth evidence that readiness concerns require a change and that such a change would not degrade wartime military readiness."
Rep. McKeon is right. Defense Secretary Gates, Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman Carl Levin and Mr. Obama need to call a halt to their planned "moratorium" on discharges for those who engage in homosexual behavior. The 1993 law is clear that such conduct presents "an unacceptable risk to the high standards of morale, good order and discipline, and unit cohesion that are the essence of military capability." Perhaps the commander in chief can explain how, in the midst of war, any of that has changed.