Fox News' The O'Reilly Factor host
Bill O'Reilly has come out against “Don't Ask, Don't Tell,” the
1993 law that bans openly gay service.
In an appearance Monday on NBC's
Tonight Show, O'Reilly told host Jay Leno that President
Barack Obama should simply do away with the measure with an executive
order.
“It's just not fair, they should stop
this nonsense,” O'Reilly said.
The men were discussing the recent
discharge of Dan Choi, the
29-year-old Army linguist and West Point graduate that was let go
under the policy for announcing he's gay more than a year ago on
MSNBC's The Rachel Maddow Show.
O'Reilly's position is surprising in
light of previous comments he's made over the years against gay
rights.
In June, the Gay & Lesbian Alliance
Against Defamation (GLAAD) issued a call to action against O'Reilly
for linking being gay to terrorism while discussing with Fox
News anchor Jane Skinner a gay-inclusive McDonald's ad
campaign running in France.
In 2008, the conservative host decried
a California Supreme Court ruling that struck down an anti-gay
marriage ban.
“They created yet another fundamental
right that had never existed before,” O'Reilly told Megyn Kelly,
host of America's Newsroom, on The O'Reilly Factor.
“They are making this stuff up out of whole cloth.”
“How about polygamists,” asked
O'Reilly, “could they move from Utah and get a fundamental right to
marry?” “No,” responded Kelly, “They didn't find that right
for polygamists or people who commit incest.”