Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!americast.com!americast.com!americast-post Newsgroups: americast.twt.news From: americast-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: americast-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: Military: Don't let gays in Date: Fri, 13 Nov 92 15:11:15 EST Message-ID: \SE A \HD Military: Don't let gays in \SH Clinton plan hit from all ranks \BY Rowan Scarborough \CR THE WASHINGTON TIMES President-elect Bill Clinton will meet stiff resistance within the armed forces as he attempts to keep a campaign promise to open the military ranks to homosexuals. Enlisted personnel, junior officers and four-star generals are expressing deep-seated opposition to allowing openly homosexual men and women to serve in one of the nation's most tradition-bound institutions. They warn of morale problems stemming from what would amount to forced intimacy with homosexuals in close living quarters on ships, in barracks and in the field. One officer told The Washington Times that he was worried about contracting the AIDS virus if he were to aid a wounded homosexual soldier. Some say they are considering quitting and predict mass resignations. Others promise to grudgingly follow Mr. Clinton's order. "I think it causes too many problems," said Marine Corps 2nd Lt. Jim Swafford, who is in basic combat training at Quantico, Va. "It's not that they're not capable of doing the job, but it causes too many problems emotionally for the majority who aren't gay, who aren't homosexual. "They feel uncomfortable with it, and I think it takes away from the mission. You have to be into the mission mentally," he said. "I think you'll see mass resignations," said a Navy lieutenant stationed near Virginia Beach who flies A-6 attack jets off aircraft carriers. "There's obviously people who are homosexuals and are in the Navy who are not open about it," said the lieutenant, who asked not to be named. "But if they make it open, you'll have a social problem that will be hard to deal with. People who are heterosexual, you just don't want to deal with that stuff." Said an Army colonel at the Pentagon who has commanded tank battalions, "If you think the fight over women in combat is something, wait for the debate over gays in the military. There is just strong opposition up and down the line." That line reaches all the way to the top. The nation's highest-ranking uniformed officer, Gen. Colin Powell, has stated his opposition in several forums. In a letter to Rep. Patricia Schroeder, Colorado Democrat, the Joint Chiefs chairman disputed her contention that allowing homosexuals in the military was akin to ending segregation in the ranks over 40 years ago. "Skin color is a benign, nonbehavioral characteristic. Sexual orientation is perhaps the most profound of human behavioral characteristics. Comparison of the two is a convenient but invalid argument," he wrote. "As chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, as well as an African-American fully conversant with history, I believe the policy we have adopted is consistent with the necessary standards of order and discipline required in the armed forces," said Gen. Powell, whose second term expires in October, overlapping Mr. Clinton's first months in office. Even a former Clinton primary rival, Sen. Bob Kerrey, Nebraska Democrat, said that while he supports the president-elect's plan to lift the ban on homosexuals in the military, such a move will be difficult. Some restrictions may be needed, the Vietnam War Medal of Honor recipient said. Mr. Kerrey added that neither homosexuals nor women should be allowed in combat. Mr. Clinton's plan for revolutionary social change among the nation's 1.8-million-member armed forces is not a high priority, according to aides who say he pronounced the policy during the campaign in response to a question, not in a prepared speech. The president-elect in recent days has sought to reassure military leaders by saying he would insist on safeguards against improper behavior. He said he also would consult with national security advisers, including retired Adm. William Crowe, a campaign supporter who favors the current ban on homosexuals in the military. "My concern here is to do it in a way that is most appropriate for the management of the whole national security and military interest of the country," Mr. Clinton told reporters yesterday. "I want to consult with a lot of people about what our options are, including people who may disagree with me about the ultimate merits. "What I want to do is come up with an appropriate response that will focus sharply on the fact that we do have people who are homosexuals who've served our country with distinction, who were never kicked out of the military, others who have been kicked out of the military and one of whom has been just reinstated by a court," he said. "The issue ought to be conduct." Mr. Clinton was referring to the case of Navy Petty Officer Keith Meinhold. A federal judge this week in San Francisco ordered the Navy to reinstate the sailor after his discharge on grounds of homosexuality. Petty Officer Meinhold reclaimed his job as a sonar instructor yesterday at Moffett Naval Air Station in California. The president-elect is bucking a policy to which the four military branches strictly adhere. The policy, in force since the start of World War II and formalized 10 years ago, states that "homosexuality is incompatible with military service." An admission of homosexuality is sufficient evidence for discharge. The Navy appears to be the most enforcement-minded branch. Naval Investigative Service agents are specifically assigned the task of rooting out homosexuals. The General Accounting Office, Congress' investigative branch, estimates the Pentagon has expelled an average 1,500 homosexual men and women each year since 1980. Upon taking office, Mr. Clinton will face unanimous opposition from a Joint Chiefs of Staff inherited from President Bush. In addition to Gen. Powell, Gen. Gordon Sullivan, the Army chief; Adm. Frank Kelso, chief of naval operations; Gen. Merrill McPeak, Air Force chief; and Gen. Carly Mundy, Marine Corps commandant, support the ban. "My belief is, our policies are sound, and I see no reason to change those policies," Gen. Sullivan has said. "I just see no reason to do it." The same opposition is voiced further down the ranks. "I think it's going to be a very, very difficult issue for the military to face," said Marine Corps Capt. Bobby Ellithorpe, a combat training officer. "The first thing is the social stigma attached to it. In our society there is still the feeling that homosexuality is not right." Capt. Ellithorpe raised one possible battlefield scenario. "If you're shot and you're bleeding and I know you're homosexual, in the back of my mind I may or may not know that you have AIDS, and that may prevent me from rendering first aid for you. That will be a terrible thing to happen in combat. "I'm sure there'll be some resignations," he said. "I'm sure some of our enlisted personnel would get out rather than face that. On the other hand, you're going to see some Marines who love the Corps so much that in order to protect it and keep it going and protect the country, they'll turn aside their personal opinion and make it work." Added a Navy officer stationed at the Pentagon, "They do good work. Yes, they're good people. But in a military setting, you don't have privacy. So, for example, in a shower facility, it's a public area. Homosexuals probably are going to be looking at the men different than heterosexuals would because of their behavioral differences." This article is copyright 1992 The Washington Times. 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