Obama Will End ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’

Here’s what Robert Gibbs, Barack Obama’s top talker, had to say about whether the next president would work to end the military’s policy of discrimination against gay service members: “You don’t hear politicians give a one-word answer much. But it’s ‘Yes.’ “

He’ll need the help of Congress to do it, but that shouldn’t be too hard, now that some 81 percent* of the country is in favor of the change.

*Follow the link below for the relevant polling data.

CNN:

WASHINGTON — In an overlooked YouTube video posted on Friday, a spokesman for Barack Obama said the president-elect is committed to ending the policy that bars openly gay men and women from serving in the U.S. armed forces.

Barack Obama is committed to overturning “don’t ask, don’t tell,” his spokesman, Robert Gibbs, says.

In a response to a question on the Web site Change.gov asking whether Obama would get rid of the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy, Obama spokesman Robert Gibbs said: “You don’t hear politicians give a one-word answer much. But it’s ‘Yes.’ “

Gibbs on Wednesday expanded on his answer, saying, “There are many challenges facing our nation now and the president-elect is focused first and foremost on jump-starting this economy.

“So not everything will get done in the beginning but he’s committed to following through” with ending the policy against being openly gay in the military.

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