The Blend welcomes Sue Fulton and JD Smith as commentators who will liveblog the Senate debate involving DADT repeal. They will be here today and tomorrow.
The URL for the CoverItLive console is https://tinyurl.com/phbdadt.
Sue Fulton is the Chair of Knights Out – 1980 graduate of West Point, former Army Captain and company commander.
JD Smith is the active duty co-director of OutServe. A graduate of a U.S. service academy. “JD Smith” is a pseudonym since he is currently an active-duty officer.
Note: Comments will be disabled in CoverItLive, but readers are welcome to use this blog entry to post your thoughts/reactions. If you want to see what people are tweeting about DADT, we’ve included that stream on the right.
Video feed is here: https://www.c-spanvideo.org/program/SenateSession4651
It is also below the fold so you can watch and comment.
8:43Pam Spaulding: This event is now live. Reader comments are disabled for the time being to allow producer commentary until break.
8:49Jd Smith: Everyone is filtering into room now. Not many seats to watch.
8:54Pam Spaulding: Thanks for doing this, JD!
8:54Jd Smith: Sitting next to lt col fehrenbach, Jonathan Hopkins, Tony woods.
8:55Jd Smith: Code pink has started to hold up signs.
8:55Jd Smith: They say “repeal dadt”
8:56Jd Smith: No problem Pam! Hope you feel better!
8:57Jd Smith: Code pink has stood up with signs now. Secretary gates is here
9:00Louise: Good morning, all, and thank you!
9:02Jd Smith: McCain has just showed up
9:03Louise: https://www.c-spanvideo.org/pro… A link to videofeed.
9:04Jd Smith: Code pink has sat down in audience. Security is talking to them now
9:05Pam Spaulding: Hi Louise. I will add that link to the post that is now up: https://pamshouseblend.com/diar…
9:06Sue Fulton: Hey everybody. Tech-challenged, but I’m here now.
9:07Sue Fulton: Quick bio on me: West Point ’80 grad. Company commander in Germany. Witch-hunted under the old gay ban, but managed not to get kicked out. Resigned on my own in 1986. Helped found Knights Out in 2009; currently I am the Chair.
9:08Sue Fulton: In today’s hearing, all four of those testifying are in favor of repeal (tomorrow, not so much…)
9:09Sue Fulton: We can expect Ham to give a strong defense of the Working Group report; to some extent he will also defer to the SecDef (“We did exactly what the SecDef charged us to do”).
9:10Jd Smith: I obviously can’t see cspan, are the hearings now being broadcasted?
9:10Sue Fulton: It will also be interesting to see if they ask Ham (he and civilian Jeh Johnson) co-chaired the Working Group) directly about his personal views, it will be interesting.
9:10Louise: Yes they are, JD; I found a link to the video and we’ve got it posted on the Blend.
9:10Sue Fulton: Yes, the broadcast started when Sen Levin started speaking.
9:12Sue Fulton: Sen Levin is in process of the intro, praising the report and focusing on the 92% message, i.e., those servicemembers who know they’ve served with gay troops think there’s no problem.
Levin: “In other words, real experience is a powerful antidote to the stereotypes” that create so much discomfort among some troops.
9:13Jd Smith: The 92% point in the survey that says 92% of straight service members that have known someone that is gay in their unit and found it to be ok Is a huge positive talking point in this debate.
9:13Jd Smith: McCain looks angry.
9:14Sue Fulton: Expect McCain and his cronies to focus on the 30% of troops – 40% of Marines, even higher among combat Marines – who said they thought repeal would negatively impact readiness.
9:16Sue Fulton: Towards the end of the Working Group’s report, they made two points clearly focused at McCain: 1) the report is NOT biased by the views of SecDef and Obama; and 2) we didn’t ask whether SHOULD DADT be repealed (as McCain said they should) because we don’t make decisions by referendum, but we did find out that we CAN.
9:16Sue Fulton: And now McCain is going RIGHT AFTER that second point
9:16Sue Fulton: McCain says that Congress must answer the question SHOULD DADT be repealed.
9:16Pam Spaulding: CSPAN Video: https://cs.pn/e8h84C The video is now embedded on the Blend as well. https://pamshouseblend.com/diar…
9:17Sue Fulton: Now McCain is going to try to delay… “There’s more than 1500 pages and 72,000 comments” that they have to review
9:18Jd Smith: Here we go, McCain going after the 28% only filling out survey. Palm center put out a great memo to respond to this argument. Can someone post that link?
9:18Louise: Let me find it, JD; will post ASAP.
9:19Sue Fulton: McCain is now bringing up “only 28%” responded. Palm Center deftly took this apart with a scholarly analysis. This number is at least at the average of email survey responses. Check it at https://www.palmcenter.org/pres…
9:20Louise: https://www.palmcenter.org/publ…
9:21Jd Smith: You should see the reaction of servicemembers right now in audience. McCain is insulting us all right now.
9:21Sue Fulton: “This debate is focused on our military and its effectiveness”
McCain is ending on a note of, this is too controversial to address in our military at a time of two wars.
He ends “one of our highest responsibilities is to our men and women in the Armed Services” – though apparently not the gay ones.
9:22Jd Smith: Everyone in audience laughed at McCain when he said to put politics aside
9:22Sue Fulton: Secy Gates is on now.
9:23Sue Fulton: Gates: “This … is not a poll. The Commander in Chief made his position clear.”
9:23Code Pink demonstration moments ago
9:23Sue Fulton: Go Code Pink!
9:23Jd Smith: That’s Chris neff smiling from the palm center.
9:25Sue Fulton: “Existing laws should be applied equally” – t will be interesting to see if the billeting and showers issue will be brought up. I kind of hope it will, because I believe Mullen and/or Ham can handle that neatly.
9:26Jd Smith: Potentially dangerous!?!?
9:26Sue Fulton: In Tuesday’s press conference, Ham addressed that billeting concerns/issues will continue to be handled at the low-level commander issue, not by policy.
9:28Jd Smith: The British military integrated gays by a court decision. So it can change overnight.
9:28Sue Fulton: Gates is making one of HIS biggest concerns now – we don’t want this to happen in the courts, we want it legislatively so we can do it our way.
9:28Sue Fulton: Don’t agree with him that that’s necessary – JD, you’re right – but this could be persuasive for moderate Repubs.
9:29Jd Smith: It’s really cold in this room (well I’m cold)
9:30Jd Smith: Gates is making an important point now that he did this before with the CIA
9:31Sue Fulton: Now he’s taking a little credit for tightening the procedures on enforcing DADT, that he’s “added a measure of commonsense and decency to a legally and morally fraught process” – that last phrase is pretty damn strong.
9:32Sue Fulton: Mullen is going right after the % of combat troops who are resistant
9:32Jd Smith: McCain is smiling at ADM Mullens comments. Specifically at the part where Mullen said it’s fact now.
9:32Sue Fulton: This is a good strategy. He’s going to handle this.
9:33Sue Fulton: Mullen “Knowing [you’ve served with someone gay ] means a lot.”
9:36Sue Fulton: Mullen is not speaking in soundbites, but this is eloquent and moving. “It may be the combat arms community” that does the best job implementing this change “disciplined as they are.”
9:37Sue Fulton: Mullen is talking about foreign military experience He acknowledges that their military is not as challenged as ours, but he dismisses that.”gay or straight, they have fought with our troops, and bled with them.”
9:38Sue Fulton: Mullen is impressive. Gates comes off as a polished politician; Mullen comes off as a leader. McCain should be shaking in his loafers.
9:39Sue Fulton: Mullen is clarifying, it’s all about effective leadership. This is perfect. Positions opponents as lacking confidence in leaders throughout the military.
he quotes a Marine: “If that’s what the president orders, I can tell you by God, we’re going to outpace the other services in getting it done.”
9:40Sue Fulton: Now Mullen is echoing Gates’s point – don’t let this happen in the courts.
9:40Jd Smith: I’m very impressed my ADM Mullen right now.
9:41Sue Fulton: “War… does not make change harder – it facilitates it.”
9:41Sue Fulton: “Knowing something to be true…about some of their colleages will not take away” from troops’ readiness and ability to fight. – Mullen
9:42Sue Fulton: OOH – slap down to John McCain for calling him “political”
9:42Sue Fulton: This is the right thing to do for our military, our nation, and our collective honor.
9:44Sue Fulton: Ham: short and sweet. Holding his powder for the responses. My guess is he will be the target of most of the questioning.
9:45Sue Fulton: Jeh Johnson – the chief lawyer for DoD. Four-star equivalent.
9:47Sue Fulton: Ham is an Infantry guy, solid command experience. Had battalion command in Macedonia during the mess there.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/C…
9:47Sue Fulton: Johnson is outlining the risk of letting this happen in the courts.
9:48Sue Fulton: Clear that they are all standing by the merits of the study – but they know their best strategic angle is, do this in Congress or the courts will do it, and we don’t want that.
9:48Sue Fulton: Passing repeal legislatively allows repeal “…on our terms, on our timetable, on the advice of our senior military leadership.”
9:49Sue Fulton: I disagree with this notion that this could be done with a stroke of the pen, that all these policies need to be handled – but I see the strategy.
9:50Jd Smith: Wow.
9:50Sue Fulton: Cool – so they’ve positioned Johnson as the guy to answer the legal questions only.
9:50Louise: Now McCain is trying to block by suggesting MORE hearings? Good lord is he DESPERATE!!
9:50Sue Fulton: McCain already starting his strategy, we need more time.
9:50Sue Fulton: Louise – dead right.
9:51Sue Fulton: He clearly thinks this is his best strategy – delay. Shocker.
9:51Louise: My deep deep respect for those in the room, that they are not standing and screaming at McCain. I am sitting here in Maine and apoplectic!
9:51Sue Fulton: JD, what is the reaction like in the room?
9:51Jd Smith: Dang. Secretary gates shuts McCain down
9:52Sue Fulton: Guaranteed McCain will bring this up over and over –
9:52Jd Smith: The audience is all laughing about going from 5-6 minutes
9:52Sue Fulton: Six-minute question rounds instead of five.
9:54Jd Smith: The audience got very angry. And even The press seemed to negatively react to McCain suggesting more hearings.
9:56Sue Fulton: Levin is trying to make the point that these guys considered the views of the service chiefs – trying to mitigate the problems we will hear tomorrow from them. Clumsily, I might add. I mean, I love Levin, but hey.
9:58Pam Spaulding: McCain is an embarrassment.
10:01Sue Fulton: McCain vs Mullen/Ham is the headline event. I think the officers will win in a TKO.
10:03Sue Fulton: He asked Ham’s personal opinion about repeal, not about homosexuality. Wrong question, Senator.
10:03Sue Fulton: McCain is coming across as bitchy.
10:03Sue Fulton: But maybe that’s just me.
10:07Sue Fulton: McCain is quoting 265,000 troops “will leave the military” if DADT repealed. Gates is pointing out that Aussie and Brit surveys had similar results, and it never happened. McCain will respond about how much braver and stronger (and more homophobic) our troops are… j.k.
10:09Sue Fulton: OMIGOD, he’s pointing to the gay guy for WikiLeaks!!!! McCain is TRULY desperate.
10:09Sue Fulton: Ran out of time, but he’s trying to pin WikiLeaks on the gays.
10:11Jd Smith: The room really started to turn on McCain when he started to talk about wki leaks
10:11Sue Fulton: Lieberman is up. He’s making the case, whether the law should be repealed is up to Congress. In making the case, as long as the law CAN be repealed, Congress should act in the interests of justice. Not a bad point, but as a Jon Stewart devotee, I can never listen to Lieberman without hearing Deputy Dawg…
10:11Louise: I am just astounded at that by McCain, Sue. Almost as astounded as I am at finding myself saying “ATTA BOY!” at Joe Lieberman…
10:11Sue Fulton: The wikileaks point was nasty politics.
10:1310:13
Sue Fulton: JD, how many uniforms in the room outside those supporting the witnesses and members? do you sense pro or con?
10:14Sue Fulton: Lieberman is trying to make the point that DADT is bad for the military, but focused on 14K kicked out. Mullen is talking about recruiting and retention – which is good.
10:16Sue Fulton: The RAND study! Great.
Lieberman quoting from a gay servicemember, making the point that there won’t be huge numbers of people coming out, much less “flaunting” as some seem to be so concerned about.
10:17Jd Smith: Must not be too important to McCain. He’s left the hearings
10:17Jd Smith: Something must be more important
10:17Sue Fulton: At McCain’s age, you can’t go an hour without a bathroom. No insult, I’m just sayin’.
10:18Sue Fulton: Lieberman: “DADT is a stain on the honor of our military.”
10:18Louise: True, plus one never knows who McCain is talking w/out there and getting his next batch of talking points from. Just sayin’.
10:19Sue Fulton: Why, Elaine! so nice to see you! 😉
10:19Louise: lol- yup!
10:19Sue Fulton: Inhofe is back to the retention and recruitment issues. But if this is their only point, they’re dead in the water.
10:20Sue Fulton: Mullen is being very reasonable: there are lots of reasons why servicemembers stay in or get out. He’s going back to the 92% point, quite effectively.
10:20Sue Fulton: Inhofe: why did only x% respond? Mullen: by every scholarly view, this was an extraordinary response level.
