Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, and The West Wing
I saw Andrew Sullivan's post last night about President Obama's Don't Ask Don't Tell speech, in which Andrew wrote ... He says he will end Don't Ask Don't Tell but he has done nothing, and he offered no time-line, no deadline and no verifiable record that he has done anything, despite his claims that he has. .... and then saw a post on the same subject at Think Progress which had this, in part ...
Yesterday in his speech to the Human Rights Campaign, President Obama pledged to “end” the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy. That comment was the subject of a debate this morning on NBC’s Meet the Press. Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI) expressed his support for Obama’s position, but emphasized that it needs “buy-in from the military.” Former Joint Chiefs Chairman Richard Myers struck a different note ..... This current status quo of quiet discrimination is responsible for the dismissal of many qualified soldiers with critical skills. “By not allowing gay Americans to serve openly, we are imposing an artificial limit on the number of loyal Americans that our military can draw upon to fill its ranks,” writes Stephen Walt.
Reading all this reminded me of a 2000 episode of the tv series The West Wing - Let Bartlet Be Bartlet - in which the President half-heartedly tries to get the military to do away with the Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy, eventually firming up his resolve to do the right thing despite its expected unpopularity. Maybe President Obama might benefit from watching the episode :)
Here's a video of part of the episode, showing Deputy White House Communications Director, Sam, talking to some military representatives and congressmen about changing the don't ask, don't tell policy, when the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Fitzwallace, steps into the room and gives his opinion (sorry, it's not in very good condition), and below that is the transcript of the whole part of the episode dealing with the subject ....
*************************
THE ROOSEVELT ROOM.
Toby [White House Communications Director] and Sam [Deputy White House Communications Director] meet with several majors and congressmen in the room. MAJOR TATE, MAJOR THOMPSON, and two Congressmen, KEN and MIKE, are seated around the table.
TOBY - Good morning. Good morning. We all know each other. Why don't we sit down? We've been conducting meetings with various senior staff on the D.O.D., N.S.C. and House and Senate Armed Services. We feel a little hamstrung because of the policy inherited regarding gays and lesbians in the military. And we'd like as much reform input as possible before making a recommendation to the President.
MAJOR THOMPSON - Toby, can I interrupt you for a moment?
TOBY - Sure.
MAJOR THOMPSON - What do you imagine'd be the consequence of your recommendation to the President?
TOBY - Well, actually, it'll be Sam's recommendation to the President. It's on his desk, and
I'm just helping out.
MAJOR THOMPSON - Sam, what do you imagine'd be the consequence?
SAM - Major, bearing in mind that the President seldom, if ever, listens to my recommendation, I'd imagine the consequence to be little.
KEN - I would imagine it to be very little, Sam.
SAM - Congressman, the commander-in-chief orders that gays can serve openly in the military. That's the way it's gonna be, and anybody who chooses to disobey that order can stand court marshal under the uniform code and military justice.
MAJOR TATE - The President can order the joint chiefs and the chiefs can give all the orders they want. It takes an act of Congress to amend the uniform code. And the uniform code makes sodomy a crime. That's the end of the story.
TOBY - I guess it's gonna be a pretty short meeting.
MAJOR TATE - Yeah.
***
THE ROOSEVELT ROOM - DAY
The meeting continues.
MIKE - It ain't broke, don' fix it, Sam.
SAM - Officer...
MIKE - 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' works.
SAM - No, it doesn't.
MIKE - Yes, it does.
SAM - Do you like to know how much it doesn't? Eleven hundred and forty-five were discharged from being gay in 1998.
TOBY - That's a record.
SAM - It's a 92% increase since 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' was implemented. 414 Air Force discharges--the highest in two decades. 271 of them during basic training at Lackland Air Force Base. 271 during basic training.
TOBY - Major, what the hell is going on at Lackland Air Force Base?
MAJOR TATE - I don't like your sense of humor.
TOBY - I get that a lot.
***
THE ROOSEVELT ROOM - NIGHT
The meeting continues without Toby.
MAJOR THOMPSON - Hang on!
SAM - I'm saying -
MAJOR THOMPSON - Hang on. A lot of those cases -
SAM - This report, by the way -
MAJOR TATE - We know the report.
SAM - I'm saying -
MAJOR TATE - We can read. We know the report.
MAJOR THOMPSON - We know the report. A lot of the cases you're talking about is the gays being discharged, came from voluntary statements-
SAM - And a lot of these are not voluntary statements, not by any definition given by any civilian court in this country. It is not a voluntary statement when it's given to a psychotherapist, as in the case of former Marine corporal David Blessing. It is not a voluntary statement when it's made into a personal diary, as in the case of former West Point cadet Nicole Garrison. It is not when it's made after being asked, as in the case of master chief officer Diane Kelli. And it is not when it is coerced out of a service member through fear...through intimidation, through death threats, in terms of criminal prosecution, as in the case of former Air Force Major Bob Kiddis, former Marine gunnery sergeant Kevin Keys, and four sailors aboard the U.S.S. Essex.
MAJOR - Sam, you take care of your guys; we'll take care of ours.
SAM - You're not taking care of your guys. Your guys are out looking for jobs.
MAJOR THOMPSON - Those weren't our guys.
Admiral Fitzwallace enters [Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff]
MAJOR TATE - Oh my God.
MAJOR THOMPSON - Attention!
The officers in the room swiftly stand straight.
FITZWALLACE - Good afternoon, Sam.
SAM - Mr. Chairman.
FITZWALLACE - Congressman.
KEN - How do you do admiral?
FITZWALLACE - Good to meet you again, Ken. [to Mike] We haven't met.
MIKE - Mike Satchel.
FITZWALLACE - From Oregon?
MIKE - Yes, sir.
FITZWALLACE - Percy Fitzwallace.
MIKE - It's an honor to meet you, admiral.
FITZWALLACE - I imagine it would be. Yes.
SAM - Uh, Major Tate, Major Thompson, this is Chairman Fitzwallace.
FITZWALLACE - They're not gonna speak to me until I speak to them, Sam. They're pretty well-trained. [to Tate and Thompson] Stand easy, fellas. [sees the snack on the table] Is this Danish for everybody?
SAM - Oh. Yes sir.
FITZWALLACE - [to Tate and Thompson] We're discussing gays in the military, huh?
MAJOR THOMPSON - Yes sir.
FITZWALLACE - What do you think?
No response.
FITZWALLACE - I said what do you think?
MAJOR THOMPSON - Sir, we're here to help the White House form a possible-
FITZWALLACE - I know. I'm asking you what you think.
MAJOR TATE - Sir, we're not prejudiced toward homosexuals.
FITZWALLACE - You just don't want to see them serving in the Armed Forces?
MAJOR TATE - No sir, I don't.
FITZWALLACE - 'Cause they oppose a threat to unit discipline and cohesion.
MAJOR TATE - Yes sir.
FITZWALLACE - That's what I think too. I also think the military wasn't designed to be an instrument of social change.
MAJOR TATE - Yes sir.
FITZWALLACE - The problem with that is that what they were saying to me 50 years ago. Blacks shouldn't serve with Whites. It would disrupt the unit. You know what? It did disrupt the unit. The unit got over it. The unit changed. I'm an admiral in the U.S. Navy and chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff...Beat that with a stick. [to Ken] We'll see you, Ken. [leaves]
SAM - Excuse me.
Sam leaves and goes into the HALLWAY. He tries to catch up with Fitzwallace.
SAM - Mr. Chairman... Just, thanks for stopping in.
FITZWALLACE - You're not gonna get anywhere.
SAM - The President just wanted some exploratory meetings.
FITZWALLACE - Yeah.
Fitzwallace walks away. Sam goes back to the room.
***
ROOSEVELT ROOM - NIGHT
KEN - I'd like to go on record by saying-
SAM - Congressman.
KEN - No. I'd like to go on record-
SAM - There is no record.
KEN - I'd like to go on record saying that I have no objection to what somebody does in the privacy of their own home. But when we're talking about schools, when we're talking about the boy scouts, when we're talking about an army barracks -
SAM - You know, Ken. There's something I'd always wanted to ask you. Why does being gay mean you can't keep your hands to yourself? And with what kind of gentlemanly pride are the armed forces willing to lay claim to restraint in that area? You want me to go get the file on sexual harassment at the DoD? You want me to ask these guys about Tailhook?
KEN - I've had enough of this.
SAM - And I've had more than enough of this!
KEN - Sam, don't ask, don't tell, don't pursue is the law. It's federal law, and it takes an act of Congress to change it. If the President were serious about changing it, he'd be serious about changing it. He would not send you in here with me. He would not send you in here with two relatively junior D.O.D. staffers. He'd call his staff together, he'd say, 'I want a resolution in the House. I want 50 high-profile co-sponsors. I want a deal, and I want it now.' Has the President done that?
SAM - The President's veracity on this -
KEN - Has the President done that, Sam?
SAM - No.
KEN - Okay then... Is this meeting anything more than a waste of time?
SAM - No.
KEN - Okay then.
Everyone leaves. Sam sits still.
***
In this segment, Leo McGarry, the White House Chief of Staff, talks to President Bartlet about how he's holding back (and holding his staff back) from making the changes he should, like getting rid of 'don't ask, don't tell', because of fear of not being re-electable ....
LEO - Sam can't get real on Don't Ask, Don't Tell because you're not gonna be there, and every guy sitting across the room from him knows that.
BARTLET - Leo, if I ever told you to get aggressive about campaign finance or gays in the military, you would tell me, 'Don't run too fast or go to far.'
LEO - If you ever told me to get aggressive about anything, I'd say I serve at the pleasure of the President. [pause] But we'll never know, sir, because I don't think you're ever gonna say it ......
BARTLET - I don't want to feel like this anymore.
LEO - You don't have to.
BARTLET - This is more important than reelection. I want to speak now.
LEO - Now we're in business! ........ we're gonna lose some of these battles, and we might even lose the White House, but we're not gonna be threatened by issues. We're gonna put them front and center. We're gonna raise the level of public debate in this country, and let that be our legacy .....
****************************
Yesterday in his speech to the Human Rights Campaign, President Obama pledged to “end” the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy. That comment was the subject of a debate this morning on NBC’s Meet the Press. Sen. Carl Levin (D-MI) expressed his support for Obama’s position, but emphasized that it needs “buy-in from the military.” Former Joint Chiefs Chairman Richard Myers struck a different note ..... This current status quo of quiet discrimination is responsible for the dismissal of many qualified soldiers with critical skills. “By not allowing gay Americans to serve openly, we are imposing an artificial limit on the number of loyal Americans that our military can draw upon to fill its ranks,” writes Stephen Walt.
Reading all this reminded me of a 2000 episode of the tv series The West Wing - Let Bartlet Be Bartlet - in which the President half-heartedly tries to get the military to do away with the Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy, eventually firming up his resolve to do the right thing despite its expected unpopularity. Maybe President Obama might benefit from watching the episode :)
Here's a video of part of the episode, showing Deputy White House Communications Director, Sam, talking to some military representatives and congressmen about changing the don't ask, don't tell policy, when the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Fitzwallace, steps into the room and gives his opinion (sorry, it's not in very good condition), and below that is the transcript of the whole part of the episode dealing with the subject ....
*************************
THE ROOSEVELT ROOM.
Toby [White House Communications Director] and Sam [Deputy White House Communications Director] meet with several majors and congressmen in the room. MAJOR TATE, MAJOR THOMPSON, and two Congressmen, KEN and MIKE, are seated around the table.
TOBY - Good morning. Good morning. We all know each other. Why don't we sit down? We've been conducting meetings with various senior staff on the D.O.D., N.S.C. and House and Senate Armed Services. We feel a little hamstrung because of the policy inherited regarding gays and lesbians in the military. And we'd like as much reform input as possible before making a recommendation to the President.
MAJOR THOMPSON - Toby, can I interrupt you for a moment?
TOBY - Sure.
MAJOR THOMPSON - What do you imagine'd be the consequence of your recommendation to the President?
TOBY - Well, actually, it'll be Sam's recommendation to the President. It's on his desk, and
I'm just helping out.
MAJOR THOMPSON - Sam, what do you imagine'd be the consequence?
SAM - Major, bearing in mind that the President seldom, if ever, listens to my recommendation, I'd imagine the consequence to be little.
KEN - I would imagine it to be very little, Sam.
SAM - Congressman, the commander-in-chief orders that gays can serve openly in the military. That's the way it's gonna be, and anybody who chooses to disobey that order can stand court marshal under the uniform code and military justice.
MAJOR TATE - The President can order the joint chiefs and the chiefs can give all the orders they want. It takes an act of Congress to amend the uniform code. And the uniform code makes sodomy a crime. That's the end of the story.
TOBY - I guess it's gonna be a pretty short meeting.
MAJOR TATE - Yeah.
***
THE ROOSEVELT ROOM - DAY
The meeting continues.
MIKE - It ain't broke, don' fix it, Sam.
SAM - Officer...
MIKE - 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' works.
SAM - No, it doesn't.
MIKE - Yes, it does.
SAM - Do you like to know how much it doesn't? Eleven hundred and forty-five were discharged from being gay in 1998.
TOBY - That's a record.
SAM - It's a 92% increase since 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' was implemented. 414 Air Force discharges--the highest in two decades. 271 of them during basic training at Lackland Air Force Base. 271 during basic training.
TOBY - Major, what the hell is going on at Lackland Air Force Base?
MAJOR TATE - I don't like your sense of humor.
TOBY - I get that a lot.
***
THE ROOSEVELT ROOM - NIGHT
The meeting continues without Toby.
MAJOR THOMPSON - Hang on!
SAM - I'm saying -
MAJOR THOMPSON - Hang on. A lot of those cases -
SAM - This report, by the way -
MAJOR TATE - We know the report.
SAM - I'm saying -
MAJOR TATE - We can read. We know the report.
MAJOR THOMPSON - We know the report. A lot of the cases you're talking about is the gays being discharged, came from voluntary statements-
SAM - And a lot of these are not voluntary statements, not by any definition given by any civilian court in this country. It is not a voluntary statement when it's given to a psychotherapist, as in the case of former Marine corporal David Blessing. It is not a voluntary statement when it's made into a personal diary, as in the case of former West Point cadet Nicole Garrison. It is not when it's made after being asked, as in the case of master chief officer Diane Kelli. And it is not when it is coerced out of a service member through fear...through intimidation, through death threats, in terms of criminal prosecution, as in the case of former Air Force Major Bob Kiddis, former Marine gunnery sergeant Kevin Keys, and four sailors aboard the U.S.S. Essex.
MAJOR - Sam, you take care of your guys; we'll take care of ours.
SAM - You're not taking care of your guys. Your guys are out looking for jobs.
MAJOR THOMPSON - Those weren't our guys.
Admiral Fitzwallace enters [Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff]
MAJOR TATE - Oh my God.
MAJOR THOMPSON - Attention!
The officers in the room swiftly stand straight.
FITZWALLACE - Good afternoon, Sam.
SAM - Mr. Chairman.
FITZWALLACE - Congressman.
KEN - How do you do admiral?
FITZWALLACE - Good to meet you again, Ken. [to Mike] We haven't met.
MIKE - Mike Satchel.
FITZWALLACE - From Oregon?
MIKE - Yes, sir.
FITZWALLACE - Percy Fitzwallace.
MIKE - It's an honor to meet you, admiral.
FITZWALLACE - I imagine it would be. Yes.
SAM - Uh, Major Tate, Major Thompson, this is Chairman Fitzwallace.
FITZWALLACE - They're not gonna speak to me until I speak to them, Sam. They're pretty well-trained. [to Tate and Thompson] Stand easy, fellas. [sees the snack on the table] Is this Danish for everybody?
SAM - Oh. Yes sir.
FITZWALLACE - [to Tate and Thompson] We're discussing gays in the military, huh?
MAJOR THOMPSON - Yes sir.
FITZWALLACE - What do you think?
No response.
FITZWALLACE - I said what do you think?
MAJOR THOMPSON - Sir, we're here to help the White House form a possible-
FITZWALLACE - I know. I'm asking you what you think.
MAJOR TATE - Sir, we're not prejudiced toward homosexuals.
FITZWALLACE - You just don't want to see them serving in the Armed Forces?
MAJOR TATE - No sir, I don't.
FITZWALLACE - 'Cause they oppose a threat to unit discipline and cohesion.
MAJOR TATE - Yes sir.
FITZWALLACE - That's what I think too. I also think the military wasn't designed to be an instrument of social change.
MAJOR TATE - Yes sir.
FITZWALLACE - The problem with that is that what they were saying to me 50 years ago. Blacks shouldn't serve with Whites. It would disrupt the unit. You know what? It did disrupt the unit. The unit got over it. The unit changed. I'm an admiral in the U.S. Navy and chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff...Beat that with a stick. [to Ken] We'll see you, Ken. [leaves]
SAM - Excuse me.
Sam leaves and goes into the HALLWAY. He tries to catch up with Fitzwallace.
SAM - Mr. Chairman... Just, thanks for stopping in.
FITZWALLACE - You're not gonna get anywhere.
SAM - The President just wanted some exploratory meetings.
FITZWALLACE - Yeah.
Fitzwallace walks away. Sam goes back to the room.
***
ROOSEVELT ROOM - NIGHT
KEN - I'd like to go on record by saying-
SAM - Congressman.
KEN - No. I'd like to go on record-
SAM - There is no record.
KEN - I'd like to go on record saying that I have no objection to what somebody does in the privacy of their own home. But when we're talking about schools, when we're talking about the boy scouts, when we're talking about an army barracks -
SAM - You know, Ken. There's something I'd always wanted to ask you. Why does being gay mean you can't keep your hands to yourself? And with what kind of gentlemanly pride are the armed forces willing to lay claim to restraint in that area? You want me to go get the file on sexual harassment at the DoD? You want me to ask these guys about Tailhook?
KEN - I've had enough of this.
SAM - And I've had more than enough of this!
KEN - Sam, don't ask, don't tell, don't pursue is the law. It's federal law, and it takes an act of Congress to change it. If the President were serious about changing it, he'd be serious about changing it. He would not send you in here with me. He would not send you in here with two relatively junior D.O.D. staffers. He'd call his staff together, he'd say, 'I want a resolution in the House. I want 50 high-profile co-sponsors. I want a deal, and I want it now.' Has the President done that?
SAM - The President's veracity on this -
KEN - Has the President done that, Sam?
SAM - No.
KEN - Okay then... Is this meeting anything more than a waste of time?
SAM - No.
KEN - Okay then.
Everyone leaves. Sam sits still.
***
In this segment, Leo McGarry, the White House Chief of Staff, talks to President Bartlet about how he's holding back (and holding his staff back) from making the changes he should, like getting rid of 'don't ask, don't tell', because of fear of not being re-electable ....
LEO - Sam can't get real on Don't Ask, Don't Tell because you're not gonna be there, and every guy sitting across the room from him knows that.
BARTLET - Leo, if I ever told you to get aggressive about campaign finance or gays in the military, you would tell me, 'Don't run too fast or go to far.'
LEO - If you ever told me to get aggressive about anything, I'd say I serve at the pleasure of the President. [pause] But we'll never know, sir, because I don't think you're ever gonna say it ......
BARTLET - I don't want to feel like this anymore.
LEO - You don't have to.
BARTLET - This is more important than reelection. I want to speak now.
LEO - Now we're in business! ........ we're gonna lose some of these battles, and we might even lose the White House, but we're not gonna be threatened by issues. We're gonna put them front and center. We're gonna raise the level of public debate in this country, and let that be our legacy .....
****************************
posted by crystal | 7:44 PM
6 Comments:
Nice post.
Hi Maria,
Thanks for the comment :)
The military is pretty conservative. Promotion comes regularly as long as you don't screw up, and making changes always has the possibility of screwing up, which goes into your record.
If President Obama manages to change this policy, and make it work, I think it will be quite an accomplishment. I am fairly sure the military will resist it, covertly if it has to.
I hope I am wrong.
Hugs
Mike L1234
Hi Mike,
I think you're right that the military will resist. Change is hard.
As usual, I'm going to say that two and/or more wrongs will never make “ONE” Right!
As far as I’m concerned, God would never accept the wrongs that was done to blacks, woman and many other minorities but having said that, there’s no way that He would accept some of their behaviors today no matter what the majority and/or minority might accept but just the same, our Lord is all Love and slow to anger..
I know that we’re all entitled to our opinion but let’s remember that God’s Laws are the same today, tomorrow and that’s the way they were since the beginning of “Time” “ITself". “IT” is probably and most likely wrong for me to say this but if you don’t believe me just check with “The Dead” who are resting in peace. Please don’t blame sinner vic if the answer we obtain from their holy so called body kingdom spiritual Christian wars cells. If they don’t agree with many of today’s generation heart cells who have passed their sins to “The May Trick” in our world why shouldn't our free will not be to blame?
Let's also try to remember that Our Heavenly Father built this world and universe for His Loving Family to share equally for Eternity if we can only accept that Jesus gave His Live for U>S.
Good Luck crystal and I sure hope and pray that God answers our prayers concerning these sticky discussions. We should always try to remember that when we talk to The Man Upstair and His Angels with heart of hearts that just because He doesn’t answer doesn’t mean He don’t care cause some of His greatest gifts are unanswered prayers.
Thank you again crystal for allowing us to continue to agree to disagree until "The Judgement Day" if necessary! :)
God Bless,
Peace,
Hi Victor,
It's not that I think social norms are necessarily more important than religious truths, it's that I think the religious truth about this subject is up for interpretation. Though you and I may disagree about the interpretation, I still value your comments :)
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