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In December of 1992, even before he began his first term as President, Bill Clinton announced a controversial policy related to the service of homosexuals in the military called, "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" (DADT). At the time, the Clinton administration was seriously lobbying Congress to change federal law which prevented openly homosexual individuals from serving in the United States Armed Forces. Clinton's plan was met by furious criticism from political conservatives as well as military members who said such tampering with federal law and the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) would negatively impact the nation's ability to defend itself....

Don't ask, don't tell? Ask those who've fought in Iraq or Afghanistan about the Pentagon's move to consider letting gays serve openly, and it's clear that the ranks are still split. The Army's official Facebook site has been swamped with hundreds of comments, pro and con, since Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told a Senate committee Tuesday that it's wrong to require gays to "lie about who they are" to defend their country. It's unclear which people posting on the site are currently serving, veterans or nonmilitary. While active-duty troops are cautious about commenting because...

On Tuesday Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman Michael Mullen will appear before the Senate Armed Services Committee to discuss repealing the Don’t Ask Don’t Tell policy and changing the law that prevents gay people from serving openly in the military. But polls show a majority of service members are still against allowing gays to serve openly. Originally passed in 1993 under President Clinton, Don’t Ask Don’t Tell has been the target of much criticism; in his State of the Union on Wednesday President Obama repeated his campaign promise to work with Congress to repeal it....

President Obama said he wants action this year to abolish policies that prohibit gays from openly serving in the military, for the first time establishing a timetable for one of his long-held goals. Obama called for repeal of the 1993 "don't ask, don't tell" law near the end of his State of the Union speech, addressing the issue in a single, passing mention, but rekindling the debate between supporters and opponents of the move. "This year, I will work with Congress and our military to finally repeal the law that denies gay Americans the right to serve the country they...

WASHINGTON, Dec. 22, 2009 – An Army general in Iraq is going beyond the typical protocol to ensure every able-bodied soldier in his unit stays fit to fight, even if it means punishing troops for engaging in sexual activities while deployed. Through the Multinational Division North command’s General Order No. 1, Maj. Gen. Anthony A. Cucolo III formally prohibits deployed soldiers under his command from becoming pregnant or impregnating a soldier. Defense Department regulations call for any servicemember who becomes pregnant in a combat theater or learns she’s pregnant after deploying to a combat theater to immediately redeploy to their...

Early last month, Army Maj. Gen. Tony Cucolo (left) issued General Order #1 as a means of informing those assigned to his Multi-National Division North (a.k.a., "Task Force Marne") that becoming pregnant -- or assisting in the effort -- is one of several types of conduct deemed "prejudicial to the maintenance of good order and discipline" among members of the 22,000-strong task force headquartered in Tikrit, Iraq. In fact, it ranks alongside alcohol, drugs, guns and similar vices on the general's list of prohibited activities.

Forty members of Congress are calling on the military commander who ordered the court martial of three Navy SEALs over the alleged punching of a terrorist to dismiss the charges. The letter, circulated by Rep. Dan Burton (R-Ind.), was sent Thursday to Army Major Gen. Charles T. Cleveland, commander of Special Operation Command Central. Gen. Cleveland ordered the prosecution of the three SEALs. “In our opinion, prosecutorial discretion should have been exercised,” the 40 congressmen said. “Failing that, we respectfully and strongly urge you to exercise your leadership authority, stop the impending court martial and exonerate these men.” Earlier, 33...

Law: American heroes are arraigned for allegedly punching a terrorist in wartime. What happens to Tiger Woods isn't vital to our country's future. What happens to Matthew McCabe, Julio Huertas and Jonathan Keefe is. People are more likely to recognize the names of Tiger's alleged bimbo eruptions than the names of these three Navy SEALs we sent into battle. They are not household names in a nation consumed with Climate Gate, the public option and the antics of billionaire athletes. An administration consumed with apologies has said the architect of 9/11's massacre, Khalid Sheik Mohammed, must be given all the...

War On Terror: As Khalid Sheikh Mohammed receives the benefits of U.S. justice, three Navy SEALs face court-martial for allegedly punching a captured terrorist who hanged Americans from a bridge in Fallujah. Apparently our efforts to impress the world about the marvels of our criminal justice system require us to give foreign terrorists such as Khalid Sheik Mohammed, the man who invented the manned cruise missiles that flew into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon and plowed into a Pennsylvania field on its way to the Capitol Building, the full rights and protections of the American citizens he conspired...

Secretary of Defense The Pentagon Washington, DC Dear Secretary Gates: We, the editors and staff of HUMAN EVENTS, and the many Americans who have attached their signatures to this petition, hereby request your personal intervention to dismiss the charges against Navy SEAL operators SO2 Jonathan Keefe, SO1 Julio Huertas and SO2 Matthew McCabe. These three men are charged with abusing a terrorist they captured in a daring nighttime raid on or about 1 September 2009. On that night, they -- as part of a platoon from SEAL Team 10 -- captured and detained Ahmed Hashim Abed, one of the most...

The commanding officer and top enlisted sailor serving on the Norfolk-based destroyer James E. Williams were relieved of command today after numerous cases of fraternization among the crew and allegations of sexual assault. Cmdr. Paul Marquis, skipper of the Williams, was assigned to administrative duty by Capt. Robert C. Barwis, the commander of Destroyer Squadron 26, according to a Navy spokesman. Master Chief Timothy Youell, who served as the command master chief on the Williams, also has been reassigned to an administrative job. The actions come in the wake of nine fraternization cases between senior and junior enlisted personnel on...

A report that three Navy SEALs will face courts-martial for allegedly abusing a long-sought Iraqi terror suspect during or after his capture has produced quite a bit of outrage and controversy. While it is too early in the process to make a judgment as to the commandos' guilt or innocence, there is good reason to suspect that the military has overreacted in pressing criminal charges.  In recent years, the military has been quick to press charges when dealing with servicemembers who, in attempting to do their duty in difficult circumstances, run afoul of overly detailed regulations and rules of...

A soldier's letter to the editor follows: "The tragic results of victim disarmament were made real with the shooting at Fort Hood, Texas. If this were a moral and proper world, as soon as the suspect, Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, drew his weapon, every person in the building would have had their sights leveled on him. U.S. military installations’ immoral and unjust anti-self-defense policy disarmed only the victims of this crime. How many more events like this is it going to take before Defense Department officials realize that victim disarmament costs lives and Congress amends the Uniform Code of Military...

Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and four co-conspirators detained at Gitmo are to face trial in a federal district court in New York City, where the death penalty may be sought. They had been facing trial by a military commission at Gitmo, but President Obama decided that he would prefer that the trial be in a civilian court. U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder expressed confidence that the cases were strong, and said the trials would not be impaired by the harsh interrogations of Mohammed and others: I am confident in the ability of our courts to provide these defendants a fair trial,...

Note: The following text is a quote: Hasan Charged with 13 Counts of Murder By Jim Garamone American Forces Press Service WASHINGTON, Nov. 12, 2009 – Army Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan has been charged with 13 specifications of premeditated murder in the Nov. 5 attack at Fort Hood, Texas. Hasan has been charged under Article 118 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice, meaning the case will be heard in the military system. “These are initial charges, and additional charges may be preferred in the future, subject to the ongoing criminal investigation,” said Chris Grey, spokesman for U.S. Army Criminal...

A panel of legal scholars has suggested that Congress remove sodomy as a crime punishable under the Uniform Code of Military Justice, a recommendation that could boost efforts to end a ban on gays serving openly in the U.S. military. The Commission on Military Justice recommended that Article 125, which deals with sodomy, be repealed, arguing that “most acts of consensual sodomy committed by consenting military personnel are not prosecuted, creating a perception that prosecution of this sexual behavior is arbitrary.” In its report — dated October 2009 — the commission suggested several changes be made to the UCMJ, including...

The commandant of the Marine Corps has appointed one of his deputies to decide the next step in the case against Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani, who was charged with dereliction of duty after 24 Iraqi civilians were slain in the city of Haditha in 2005. Lt. Gen. George Flynn, deputy commandant for combat development and integration, was named the new convening authority over the Chessani matter last week, a Marine Corps spokesman said Monday. Flynn was given the task by Gen. James Conway, commandant of the Marine Corps. Conway was handed the Chessani case last month after a military judge...

On the May 10 Sunday ABC News program "This Week," host George Stephanopoulos aggressively questioned President Barack's National Security Advisor James Jones on the issue of homosexuals in the military. Following news of congressional and military resistance to Obama's position on the issue, Stephanopoulos suggested that Obama should try to circumvent the law by suspending enforcement. Elaine Donnelly, President of the Center for Military Readiness issued a statement in response, "Any presidential order or Defense Department directive disregarding the law, handed down for reasons of political expediency, would constitute a serious, perhaps irreparable breach of faith with men and women...

Protesters lined a footbridge Thursday in support of Dan Choi, an openly gay Iraq War veteran from Tustin whose job is on the line because he violated the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy. The gathering of about 25 people marched overlooking Campus Drive, a few feet from a U.S. Army recruitment office, while Choi waited in New York for a television taping. He was set to appear Thursday night on MSNBC's "The Rachel Maddow Show," where last month he publicly outed himself. Days ago, Choi received a letter stating he would be discharged from the Army National Guard for...

President Barack Obama sent a hand-written note in response to a Chicago-area lesbian's plea for him to change the military's ban on openly gay and lesbian servicemembers. She sent her letter to Obama just six days after his inauguration, and it was published in the Feb. 11 Windy City Times as a cover story. 2nd Lt. Sandy Tsao photo by Donna Tsao said she is “very hopeful” after receiving the letter May 5. “I believe he is a man of his word. … My heart is bounding with joy.” The timing is bittersweet: Tsao's last day in the service will...