The Obama administration is reportedly
considering a compromise measure to repeal “Don't Ask, Don't Tell,”
the 1993 law that bans gay troops from serving openly, the Washington
Post reported.
Officials from the White House,
Democratic congressional leaders and major gay rights groups met on
Monday to consider a compromise on the law as Congress moves forward
on key votes this week.
Under the compromise, repeal would not
take effect until after the Defense Department has completed its
study on how to integrate openly gay troops in the military. The
study is already underway and expected to wrap up in December. Last
month, military leaders urged Congress to delay repeal until after it
was completed. A
request endorsed by President Barrack Obama.
Congressional leaders, however, have
decided to ignore the pleas and act on legislative repeal this week.
“Given that Congress insists on
addressing this issue this week, we are trying to gain a better
understanding of the legislative proposals they will be considering,”
said Pentagon spokesman Geoff Morrell.
Gay groups lobbying for repeal first
suggested the compromise after the Pentagon and White House united in
urging Congress to hold off on repeal.
“This objective can be accomplished
by amending both the House and Senate bills to expressly provide for
the Pentagon recommendations to be received and considered by the
Armed Services Committees before any repeal is final,” Aubrey
Sarvis, executive director of Servicemembers
Legal Defense Network, said in April. “There is no need to
bring the legislative repeal effort to a screeching halt to ensure
that the views of the Pentagon Working Group are carefully and
respectfully considered.”