The Washington Times is reporting Bill White, president of Manhattan's Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum and the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund, is being backed by some congressional and former military leaders as secretary of the Navy in the Obama administration. He would be the first openly gay chief of a branch of the military.
The Secretary of the Navy is a civilian position not covered by the don't ask, don't tell policy which prohibits anyone who "demonstrates a propensity or intent to engage in homosexual acts" from serving in the armed forces of the United States.
In March 2007, during an interview with the Pentagon channel, Defense Secretary Robert Gates stated,
"I think personal opinion really doesn't have a place here. What's important is that we have a law, a statute that governs 'don't ask, don't tell.' That's the policy of this department. And it's my responsibility to execute that policy as effectively as we can. As long as the law is what it is, that's what we'll do."Also in March 2007, at a forum in New York, Senator John McCain was asked about the military’s policy toward gays. McCain replied,
“I recently had a conversation with some other military leaders on this issue and their point to me was ‘It’s working, so leave it alone. Generally, overall, it’s working.’ I don’t think there’s any doubt that there are evolving attitudes in America about many issues, including this one, but every military leader that I talk to, I say ‘Should we change it?’ They say, ‘It’s working.’ And right now we’ve got the best military we’ve ever had - the most professional, best trained, equipped and the bravest. And so I think it’s logical to leave this issue alone. I really do.”In November 2007, the Human Rights Campaign asked the leading democratic candidates “If you are elected President, what concrete steps would you take to overturn ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell?". Senator Barack Obama (now President-elect) responded in part,
"I will task the Defense Department and the senior command structure in every branch of the armed forces with developing an action plan for the implementation of a full repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell."The appointment of White would be a strong signal that President-elect Obama intends to keep this campaign promise.
Senator John McCain was a former naval aviator who flew from the USS Intrepid in the early 1960s. He wrote the foreword for "Intrepid: The Epic Story of America's Most Legendary Warship" by Bill White and Robert L. Gandt, 2008, in which he wrote,
"Intrepid's history is our history; her story tells us not about a ship but also about a country. Long may she serve as a symbol of our country's greatness."McCain may be given an opportunity to continue Intrepid's legacy as a symbol of our country's greatness should White come up for senate confirmation and the Military Readiness Enhancement Act passes the House and comes up for vote in the senate making nondiscrimination the official policy of the U.S. military.
The non-partisan, non-profit organization Servicemembers Legal Defense Network is asking the public to encourage Gates to support President-elect Obama's position on don't ask, don't tell by signing their letter to Defense Secretary Gates. Gates could be instrumental in making "they want you as a new recruit" a reality for openly gay men and women and not just for those serving in silence.
