GOP digs in heels against repeal of 'don't ask, don't tell'

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Washington • Senate Republicans showed little sign Thursday that they would support a repeal of the law prohibiting homosexuals from serving openly in the military, making it unlikely that Congress will grant President Barack Obama one of his key priorities.

Among advocates of the repeal, action this year is considered crucial because, with Republicans due to take over the House and increase their numbers in the Senate, it is unlikely that Congress would vote to overturn the law next year.

In comments echoed by other Republicans, Arizona Sen. John McCain warned against a "rush to repeal" the 17-year-old law prohibiting homosexuals from serving openly in the military and questioned the conclusion of a Pentagon report released earlier this week that there was a low risk to the armed services in overturning the law.

McCain cited findings in the Pentagon report that said 58 percent of Marines in combat units and 48 percent of Army combat troops thought repealing the 17-year-old law would have either a negative or a very negative impact on their units.

He said he "couldn't disagree more" with Defense Secretary Robert Gates, who testified before the panel with other Pentagon leaders, that it would be possible to "mitigate" the concerns expressed by combat troops through intensive training prior to lifting restrictions on gays and lesbians.

"We send these young people into combat — we think they're mature enough to fight and die. I think they're mature enough to make a judgment on who they want to serve with and the impact on their battle effectiveness," McCain said.

He told Gates: "Mr. Secretary, I speak from personal experience."

But Gates pushed back against the notion that the opinions of soldiers should drive policy decisions, which he said was contrary to the "way our civilian-led military has ever worked."

Gates also urged the senators to act now before the courts do it for them.

He also sought to rebut the argument that it's the wrong time to attempt such a far-reaching change in the military, with more than 100,000 U.S. troops deployed in Afghanistan and Iraq.

"If not now, when? When we're out of Afghanistan?" he asked.

"I don't see the world getting to be a safer, easier place to live in, where our troops are necessarily under less stress."