Tsongas Comments on End of 'Dont Ask, Don't Tell'

This press release was provided by the office of Fifth District Congresswman Niki Tsongas.

Fifth District Congresswoman Niki Tsongas, a member of the Armed Services Committee, released the following statement regarding the formal end of the military’s Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy yesterday.
 
“Today marks the long overdue end of the military’s Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy which for eighteen years forced thousands of servicemen and women from our armed forces while discouraging countless other patriotic Americans from ever enlisting.  The policy weakened our military by removing highly skilled, trained and capable servicemembers from the ranks at a time when we were sending our men and women in uniform on multiple deployments to fight two wars.
 
“This repeal effort was first ignited by former Congressman Marty Meehan with the support of the Fifth Congressional District and as a member of the Armed Services Committee I have been working to end Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell since I was first elected.
 
“Shortly after being elected, I participated in the first Congressional hearing on the military's Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy since 1993.  Last December, I voted for the legislation that repealed Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, and I was honored to join President Obama at the White House as he signed that bill into law.
 
“Earlier this summer, in accordance with the repeal legislation, Defense Secretary Panetta certified that ending Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell would not affect military readiness.  This certification came on the heels of last year’s extensive study of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell which found that lifting the ban on gay and lesbian soldiers serving openly in our armed forces would not adversely affect military preparedness or strain unit cohesion.  The report included thousands of conversations with enlisted personnel, officers, and military commanders and confirmed what many had long known; that there is no justification to a policy that prevents some of the best and brightest from honorably serving in our Armed Forces.
 
“Our servicemen and women are first and foremost Americans, protecting freedom throughout the world.  Today, this out-dated policy will no longer unjustly discriminate against our servicemembers or deter gay or lesbian Americans from serving their country.”