During yesterday’s Rose Garden press conference, President Bush was asked how he feels about the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy and whether or not he agrees with Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Peter Pace in his belief that homosexuality is immoral.
Said Bush: “I will not be rendering judgment about individual orientation…I do believe the ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ policy is good policy.”
The Human Rights Campaign’s Joe Solmonese issued a statement following the news conference questioning the rationale behind Bush’s statement: “President Bush defending ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ as a ‘good’ policy completely ignores the negative reality this policy is having on our national security. The President’s comments today are a slap in the face to the thousands of patriotic gay and lesbian service members who are currently on active duty in Iraq and Afghanistan. If this White House is so concerned about the morale of our troops, then why would they publicly support discriminating against thousands of them currently serving on the front lines?”
