PrintDecember 20, 2010
Fighting the repeal of don't ask, don't tell
Don't Ask Don't Tell has been repealed by the federal government. But the National Guard and Air Guard are state functions that are an important component of the available forces. Its commander-in-chief is the state governor and its commander is the state Adjutant General, usually a two-star general officer who is appointed by the governor. These forces are responsible and accountable to the governor and not to the massive active duty structure.
One of the most interesting results of the 2010 election is the Republican take-over of many governors' mansions and state houses. These "competing bureaucracies" are the key to defeating the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." Perhaps twenty-five or so Republican governors with Republican state houses could band together, adopt a uniform policy, and then tell the Pentagon, "Our state legislatures recently enacted legislation enforcing the ‘Don't Ask, Don't Tell' policy in the National Guard and Air National Guard. We will recruit new soldiers and airmen according to these standards and operate our military units under them. Same-sex fraternization will be vigorously prosecuted according to the established guidelines in the Uniform Code of Military Justice, the Manual for Courts-Martial, as well as our state laws."
The Tenth Amendment has not been repealed. The Active Duty forces will be forced to endure endless classes concerning the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." But the National Guard and Air National Guard can avoid this nonsense, if only they would band together and tell the Federal Government "Enough!"
But the wise governors and state legislatures will enforce the current standards in order to maintain military discipline and not the latest version of latest social engineering experiments at the expense of national security. The Commander-in-Chief will not "Federalize" twenty-five or so state National Guard forces simply to enforce the repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." If he did, the Federal Government will have to pay them.
Let the lawsuits begin.
Van Owen is the nom-de-guerre of a retired USAF sergeant who is a small church pastor and part-time college professor.
