Top Officer Calls For Ending 'Don't Ask' Policy

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=123275178&sc=17&f=1001

Top Officer Calls For Ending 'Don't Ask' Policy

NPR - February 2, 2010

The nation's top uniformed officer told lawmakers on Tuesday that repealing the "don't ask, don't tell" policy that bans openly gay people from serving in the military is "the right thing to do."

"No matter how I look at the issue," Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Adm. Mike Mullen said, "I cannot escape being troubled by the fact that we have in place a policy which forces young men and women to lie about who they are in order to defend their fellow citizens."

His statement followed an announcement that the Pentagon would review the law with an eye to repealing it.

Mullen, who appeared before the Senate Armed Services Committee alongside Defense Secretary Robert Gates, emphasized that he was speaking for himself in calling for an end to the controversial policy, which dates back to 1993.

"For me, personally, it comes down to integrity — theirs as individuals and ours as an institution," Mullen said.