Is it me or does Secretary Gates not look too disappointed that the POTUS may have to veto a spending bill with a provision calling for the repeal of DADT in it? Even when Gates says he supports the repeal, I don’t think he does and calling for yet another study is just going to slow down the repeal for another year or more.
Also, while it’s one thing to be prepared for a big policy change, it’s quite another to essentially let the rank and file military decide if they support the policy change or not. If that had been the case at the time the military was ordered to desegregate it never would have happened. The message being sent from the top brass, including Admiral Mullen and the head of the Department of Defense, Bob Gates, is that those who don’t agree with the policy change should make very sure that they voice that disapproval. This sends a very mixed message and in my view, is a way of sabotaging the repeal.
Progressive Pantheon 