Military Readiness Enhancement Act
Encyclopedia
The Military Readiness Enhancement Act is a bill
introduced to the U.S. House of Representatives
in the 109th
and 110th
Congress by Marty Meehan
and the 111th
Congress by Ellen Tauscher
. The purpose of the bill is to amend title 10, United States Code
, to enhance the readiness of the Armed Forces
by replacing the policy concerning disclosing one's homosexuality
in the Armed Forces, referred to as "Don't ask, don't tell
" DADT, with a policy of nondiscrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. Patrick Murphy
took over the sponsorship of the legislation after Tauscher's resignation in June 2009.
The bill remained stalled in committee each time it was introduced. When the Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010
ended DADT in September 2011, it did not establish a nondiscrimination policy.
and the Subcommittee on Military Personnel but failed to advance. The 2009 bill has 192 cosponsors as of April 22, 2010, and was referred to the House Committee on Armed Services and the Subcommittee on Military Personnel. The 192 cosponsors in the House of Representatives consists of 190 Democrats and Republicans Ileana Ros-Lehtinen
and Joseph Cao
.
On March 3, 2010, Sen. Lieberman introduced legislation in the Senate
along with original cosponsors include Democratic Sens. Carl Levin
of Michigan, Mark Udall
of Colorado, Kirsten Gillibrand
of New York, Roland Burris
of Illinois, Jeff Bingaman
of New Mexico, Barbara Boxer
of California, Ron Wyden
of Oregon, Patrick Leahy
of Vermont, Arlen Specter
of Pennsylvania, Jeff Merkley
of Oregon, and Diane Feinstein of California.
reported that Congressional leaders expected the legislation to pass in early 2010. Barack Obama
stated that if passed by Congress, he would sign a bill repealing "don't ask, don't tell". Supporters of the repeal wanted Congress to eliminate the policy with the 2010 defense authorization bill in April 2009. In July 2009, Patrick Murphy
announced a "Voices of Honor" tour with the Human Rights Campaign
to increase awareness of the bill.
On February 14, 2010, former Secretary of Defense & Vice-President Dick Cheney
indicated on ABC
's This Week
that he believes the time is right to repeal the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy. On February 21, 2010, Gen. David Petraeus
commented on NBC
's Meet The Press
that he's not sure that troops in the field care about the sexual orientation of fellow service members and that he's served alongside gays and lesbians, and what matters are someone's skills and smarts.
On February 22, 2010, Sen. Joseph Lieberman (I-CT) announced his intent to sponsor Senate legislation to repeal Don't Ask, Don't Tell
. On February 25, 2010, Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus
testified "that his personal view was to support the repeal of 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell.'" He told the senators, "I think it's important to remember that we have gays in the military right now. It's only a question of whether they can serve openly or not, and I think the chairman of the joint chiefs set out that case pretty well.'"
On March 4, 2010, Air Force Secretary Michael B. Donley
, appearing before a Senate panel, responded to Senator Lieberman, that his personal view is that soldiers should not be discharged just because of their sexual orientation. While Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton A. Schwartz, expressed that his view is dependent on the consequences given a change in the policy and that is might be premature to act.
On March 9, 2010, a Senate press release announced the support of nine additional Senate Democrats and quoted Sen. Bob Casey
explaining, "As we continue to fight two wars, our national security depends on a strong and talented military.... And ending this discriminatory practice is the right thing to do for our military and for those who want to openly serve their country. I am pleased to join my colleagues in the Senate, as well as the effort led by Patrick Murphy in the House that continues to draw the support of past and present military leaders and other officials.”
, at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing, partially blamed Dutch armed forces' allowance of gays in their military for the massacre at Srebrenica, Bosnia. Sheehan's remarks were condemned by the Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende. Sheehan has since apologized, and stated that the sexual orientation of the Dutch soldiers did not affect their performance. Sheehan also stated that a retired Dutch commander, whom Sheehan said also blamed the gays for the massacre, did not actually make any such comment.
: Full text of the 2007 bill, via THOMAS
: Full text of the 2005 bill, via THOMAS
Bill (proposed law)
A bill is a proposed law under consideration by a legislature. A bill does not become law until it is passed by the legislature and, in most cases, approved by the executive. Once a bill has been enacted into law, it is called an act or a statute....
introduced to the U.S. House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
in the 109th
109th United States Congress
The One Hundred Ninth United States Congress was the legislative branch of the United States, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives, from January 3, 2005 to January 3, 2007, during the fifth and sixth years of George W. Bush's presidency. House members...
and 110th
110th United States Congress
The One Hundred Tenth United States Congress was the meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, between January 3, 2007, and January 3, 2009, during the last two years of the second term of President George W. Bush. It was composed of the Senate and the House of...
Congress by Marty Meehan
Marty Meehan
Martin Thomas "Marty" Meehan is an American attorney and politician from the state of Massachusetts. He is the current Chancellor of the University of Massachusetts Lowell, a position he assumed on July 1, 2007...
and the 111th
111th United States Congress
The One Hundred Eleventh United States Congress was the meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government from January 3, 2009 until January 3, 2011. It began during the last two weeks of the George W. Bush administration, with the remainder spanning the first two years of...
Congress by Ellen Tauscher
Ellen Tauscher
Ellen O'Kane Tauscher is an American politician and Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Affairs...
. The purpose of the bill is to amend title 10, United States Code
Title 10 of the United States Code
Title 10 of the United States Code outlines the role of armed forces in the United States Code.It provides the legal basis for the roles, missions and organization of each of the services as well as the United States Department of Defense...
, to enhance the readiness of the Armed Forces
United States armed forces
The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. They consist of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Air Force, and Coast Guard.The United States has a strong tradition of civilian control of the military...
by replacing the policy concerning disclosing one's homosexuality
Coming out
Coming out is a figure of speech for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people's disclosure of their sexual orientation and/or gender identity....
in the Armed Forces, referred to as "Don't ask, don't tell
Don't ask, don't tell
"Don't ask, don't tell" was the official United States policy on homosexuals serving in the military from December 21, 1993 to September 20, 2011. The policy prohibited military personnel from discriminating against or harassing closeted homosexual or bisexual service members or applicants, while...
" DADT, with a policy of nondiscrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. Patrick Murphy
Patrick Murphy (politician)
Patrick Joseph Murphy is the former U.S. Representative for , serving from 2007 to 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party....
took over the sponsorship of the legislation after Tauscher's resignation in June 2009.
The bill remained stalled in committee each time it was introduced. When the Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010
Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010
The Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010 is a landmark federal statute that establishes a legal process for ending the Don't ask, don't tell policy , which since 1993 prevented openly gay and lesbian people from serving in the United States Armed Forces.The Act did not immediately repeal the...
ended DADT in September 2011, it did not establish a nondiscrimination policy.
History
The 2005 bill had 122 cosponsors and the 2007 bill had 149 cosponsors. They were both referred to the House Committee on Armed ServicesUnited States House Committee on Armed Services
thumb|United States House Committee on Armed Services emblemThe U.S. House Committee on Armed Services, commonly known as the House Armed Services Committee, is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives...
and the Subcommittee on Military Personnel but failed to advance. The 2009 bill has 192 cosponsors as of April 22, 2010, and was referred to the House Committee on Armed Services and the Subcommittee on Military Personnel. The 192 cosponsors in the House of Representatives consists of 190 Democrats and Republicans Ileana Ros-Lehtinen
Ileana Ros-Lehtinen
Ileana Ros-Lehtinen is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1989. She is a member of the Republican Party....
and Joseph Cao
Joseph Cao
Anh "Joseph" Quang Cao is the former U.S. Representative for , serving from 2009 until 2011. He is a member of the Republican Party. In April 2011, he announced he will be a candidate for Attorney General of Louisiana in 2011, however in September 2011 he pulled out of the race.He was the first...
.
On March 3, 2010, Sen. Lieberman introduced legislation in the Senate
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
along with original cosponsors include Democratic Sens. Carl Levin
Carl Levin
Carl Milton Levin is a Jewish-American United States Senator from Michigan, serving since 1979. He is the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Armed Services. He is a member of the Democratic Party....
of Michigan, Mark Udall
Mark Udall
Mark Emery Udall is the senior United States Senator from Colorado and a member of the Democratic Party. From 1999 to 2009, Udall served in the United States House of Representatives, representing . He also served a term in the Colorado House of Representatives.Born in Tucson, Arizona, he is the...
of Colorado, Kirsten Gillibrand
Kirsten Gillibrand
Kirsten Elizabeth Rutnik Gillibrand is an attorney and the junior United States Senator from the state of New York and a member of the Democratic Party...
of New York, Roland Burris
Roland Burris
Roland Wallace Burris is a former United States Senator from the state of Illinois and a member of the Democratic Party....
of Illinois, Jeff Bingaman
Jeff Bingaman
Jesse Francis "Jeff" Bingaman, Jr. , is the senior U.S. Senator from New Mexico and a member of the Democratic Party...
of New Mexico, Barbara Boxer
Barbara Boxer
Barbara Levy Boxer is the junior United States Senator from California . A member of the Democratic Party, she previously served in the U.S. House of Representatives ....
of California, Ron Wyden
Ron Wyden
Ronald Lee "Ron" Wyden is the senior U.S. Senator for Oregon, serving since 1996, and a member of the Democratic Party. He previously served in the United States House of Representatives from 1981 to 1996....
of Oregon, Patrick Leahy
Patrick Leahy
Patrick Joseph Leahy is the senior United States Senator from Vermont and member of the Democratic Party. He is the first and only elected Democratic United States Senator in Vermont's history. He is the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. Leahy is the second most senior U.S. Senator,...
of Vermont, Arlen Specter
Arlen Specter
Arlen Specter is a former United States Senator from Pennsylvania. Specter is a Democrat, but was a Republican from 1965 until switching to the Democratic Party in 2009...
of Pennsylvania, Jeff Merkley
Jeff Merkley
Jeffrey Alan "Jeff" Merkley is the junior United States Senator from Oregon. A member of the Democratic Party, Merkley was a five-term member of the Oregon Legislative Assembly representing House District 47, located in eastern Multnomah County within the Portland city limits...
of Oregon, and Diane Feinstein of California.
Supporters
On October 16, 2009, The HillThe Hill (newspaper)
The Hill, a subsidiary of News Communications Inc., is a newspaper published in Washington, D.C. since 1994.Its first editor was Martin Tolchin, a veteran correspondent in the Washington bureau of The New York Times....
reported that Congressional leaders expected the legislation to pass in early 2010. Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
stated that if passed by Congress, he would sign a bill repealing "don't ask, don't tell". Supporters of the repeal wanted Congress to eliminate the policy with the 2010 defense authorization bill in April 2009. In July 2009, Patrick Murphy
Patrick Murphy (politician)
Patrick Joseph Murphy is the former U.S. Representative for , serving from 2007 to 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party....
announced a "Voices of Honor" tour with the Human Rights Campaign
Human Rights Campaign
The Human Rights Campaign is the United States' largest LGBT advocacy group and lobbying organization; according to the HRC, it has more than one million members and supporters...
to increase awareness of the bill.
On February 14, 2010, former Secretary of Defense & Vice-President Dick Cheney
Dick Cheney
Richard Bruce "Dick" Cheney served as the 46th Vice President of the United States , under George W. Bush....
indicated on ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
's This Week
This Week (ABC TV series)
This Week is ABC's Sunday morning political affairs program.The Sunday morning talk show has aired on Sunday mornings on ABC since 1981; the program is initially aired at 9:00 AM ET, although many stations air the program later, especially those in other time zones...
that he believes the time is right to repeal the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy. On February 21, 2010, Gen. David Petraeus
David Petraeus
David Howell Petraeus is the current Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, sworn in on September 6, 2011. Prior to his assuming the directorship of the CIA, Petraeus was a four-star general serving over 37 years in the United States Army. His last assignments in the Army were as commander...
commented on NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
's Meet The Press
Meet the Press
Meet the Press is a weekly American television news/interview program produced by NBC. It is the longest-running television series in American broadcasting history, despite bearing little resemblance to the original format of the program seen in its television debut on November 6, 1947. It has been...
that he's not sure that troops in the field care about the sexual orientation of fellow service members and that he's served alongside gays and lesbians, and what matters are someone's skills and smarts.
On February 22, 2010, Sen. Joseph Lieberman (I-CT) announced his intent to sponsor Senate legislation to repeal Don't Ask, Don't Tell
Don't ask, don't tell
"Don't ask, don't tell" was the official United States policy on homosexuals serving in the military from December 21, 1993 to September 20, 2011. The policy prohibited military personnel from discriminating against or harassing closeted homosexual or bisexual service members or applicants, while...
. On February 25, 2010, Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus
Ray Mabus
Raymond Edwin "Ray" Mabus, Jr. is the 75th United States Secretary of the Navy. Mabus served as the 60th Governor of the U.S...
testified "that his personal view was to support the repeal of 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell.'" He told the senators, "I think it's important to remember that we have gays in the military right now. It's only a question of whether they can serve openly or not, and I think the chairman of the joint chiefs set out that case pretty well.'"
On March 4, 2010, Air Force Secretary Michael B. Donley
Michael B. Donley
Michael Bruce Donley is the 22nd Secretary of the United States Air Force. Donley has 30 years of experience in the national security community, including service on the staff of the United States Senate, White House and The Pentagon...
, appearing before a Senate panel, responded to Senator Lieberman, that his personal view is that soldiers should not be discharged just because of their sexual orientation. While Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Norton A. Schwartz, expressed that his view is dependent on the consequences given a change in the policy and that is might be premature to act.
On March 9, 2010, a Senate press release announced the support of nine additional Senate Democrats and quoted Sen. Bob Casey
Bob Casey, Jr.
Robert Patrick "Bob" Casey, Jr. is the senior U.S. Senator from Pennsylvania and a member of the Democratic Party. He previously served as Pennsylvania Treasurer, and Pennsylvania Auditor General. He is the son of former Governor Bob Casey, Sr..He is the first Democrat elected to a full term in...
explaining, "As we continue to fight two wars, our national security depends on a strong and talented military.... And ending this discriminatory practice is the right thing to do for our military and for those who want to openly serve their country. I am pleased to join my colleagues in the Senate, as well as the effort led by Patrick Murphy in the House that continues to draw the support of past and present military leaders and other officials.”
Opposition
On March 18, 2010, retired US general John J. SheehanJohn J. Sheehan
General John J. "Jack" Sheehan is a retired United States Marine Corps general. His final active duty commands, culminating 35 years of service in the Marine Corps, were as the Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic for NATO and as Commander-in-Chief for the U.S...
, at a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing, partially blamed Dutch armed forces' allowance of gays in their military for the massacre at Srebrenica, Bosnia. Sheehan's remarks were condemned by the Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende. Sheehan has since apologized, and stated that the sexual orientation of the Dutch soldiers did not affect their performance. Sheehan also stated that a retired Dutch commander, whom Sheehan said also blamed the gays for the massacre, did not actually make any such comment.
Legislative history
| Congress | Short title | Bill number(s) | Date introduced | Sponsor(s) | # of cosponsors | Latest status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 111th Congress | Military Readiness Enhancement Act of 2009 | August 5, 2009 | Sen. Joe Lieberman Joe Lieberman Joseph Isadore "Joe" Lieberman is the senior United States Senator from Connecticut. A former member of the Democratic Party, he was the party's nominee for Vice President in the 2000 election. Currently an independent, he remains closely affiliated with the party.Born in Stamford, Connecticut,... (ID-CT) |
33 | Referred the Armed Services Committee | |
| March 3, 2009 | Ellen Tauscher Ellen Tauscher Ellen O'Kane Tauscher is an American politician and Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security Affairs... (D-CA); Patrick Murphy Patrick Murphy (politician) Patrick Joseph Murphy is the former U.S. Representative for , serving from 2007 to 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party.... (D-PA) |
192 | Referred to Subcommittee on Military Personnel | |||
| 110th Congress | Military Readiness Enhancement Act of 2007 | March 28, 2007 | Marty Meehan Marty Meehan Martin Thomas "Marty" Meehan is an American attorney and politician from the state of Massachusetts. He is the current Chancellor of the University of Massachusetts Lowell, a position he assumed on July 1, 2007... (D-MA) |
149 | ||
| 109th Congress | Military Readiness Enhancement Act of 2005 | March 2, 2005 | 122 |
External links
: Full text of the 2009 bill, via THOMASTHOMAS
THOMAS is the database of United States Congress legislative information. It is operated by the Library of Congress and was launched in January 1995 at the inception of the 104th Congress...
: Full text of the 2007 bill, via THOMAS
THOMAS
THOMAS is the database of United States Congress legislative information. It is operated by the Library of Congress and was launched in January 1995 at the inception of the 104th Congress...
: Full text of the 2005 bill, via THOMAS
THOMAS
THOMAS is the database of United States Congress legislative information. It is operated by the Library of Congress and was launched in January 1995 at the inception of the 104th Congress...