ABC: 75 percent in US against 'Don't ask' policy
According to an ABC News / Washington Post poll, a sea change in opinion over President Clinton's 'Don't ask, Don't tell' policy has occurred.
Fifteen years after its introduction as policy by President Clinton, a full two-thirds of Americans are comfortable with allowing gays to serve openly. When it became policy, 44 percent of Americans were against the free disclosure of solders' sexuality during active service.
Presumptive GOP Presidential candidate John McCain says he supports the policy. "It is working, my friends," said McCain. "The policy is working." His opponent, presumptive Democratic nominee Barack Obama, has promised to reverse the policy if elected.
Most notably, the poll's findings show a 43 point jump in support for gays in the military by conservative Republicans. A mere 16 percent (PDF link) felt similarly in 1993.
"Military service by gays is backed by large majorities across most groups, including, perhaps surprisingly, Republicans, conservatives and evangelicals," said ABC News' Emily Guskin.
"There's one exception -- service by gays who've gone public slips to 50 percent among military veterans."
The 'Don't ask, Don't tell' policy has led to the dismissal of 12,500 soldiers, according to the report. Nearly 800 of those dismissed soldiers have specialized skills the Pentagon deemed "mission critical," including some 300 language specialists, 58 of whom are Arabic linguists.
The policy was put in place to prohibit the disclosure of homosexual or bisexual tendencies because it "would create an unacceptable risk to the high standards of morale, good order and discipline, and unit cohesion that are the essence of military capability."
"I think over the years, people have begun to ask whether it really serves that purpose," commented Rep. Susan Davis (D-CA) to ABC News.
This video is from ABC's World News, broadcast July 19, 2008.
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