Moving Forward with DADT Repeal

The Air Force expects to complete Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell training for the first two tiers of service personnel—”experts” like clergy, medics, attorneys; and “leaders”—in the next few months. So far 2,100 individuals have received the training, which is focused on respect and “maintaining Air Force standards” rather than changing individual belief systems, said Gen. Norton Schwartz, Chief of Staff, during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing Thursday. “We will certainly strive to move through the larger body of airmen as quickly as we can,” he said. They constitute the third tier. President Obama signed the repeal of the Clinton-era law banning homosexuals from openly serving in the military in December, but the ban remains in effect until senior defense leaders sign off on an implementation plan. Schwartz said other than a few “one offs,” which he declined to discuss publicly, the Air Force has not had any major problems so far. (See also Gates: Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell Repeal Manageable)