'Don't ask, don't tell' policy was costly, GAO concludes

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'Don't ask, don't tell' policy was costly, GAO concludes
By Nancy A. Youssef | McClatchy Newspapers
Posted on Thursday, January 20, 2011

WASHINGTON — The U.S. military's "don't ask, don't tell" ban on gays serving openly in the military cost the Pentagon more than $193 million over six years, the Government Accountability Office reported Thursday.

In the first-ever public accounting of the cost of the Clinton-era policy, which remains in effect despite its December repeal, the GAO determined that the bulk of that expenditure, $185.7 million, went toward recruiting and training replacements for the 3,664 gay service members expelled during those years. The Pentagon spent another $7.7 million on administrative costs.

The report also suggested that the cost on military readiness of the policy had been high. It said 79 percent of soldiers expelled from the Army under "don't ask, don't tell" held jobs that were critical to military operations. In the Navy, 760 sailors expelled spoke languages considered critical to U.S. military operations, including Arabic, Serbian and Haitian Creole, the report said.

Advocates of repealing "don't ask, don't tell" hailed the report, saying it bolstered their position that barring gays and lesbians from serving openly in the military had been costly both financially and to the nation's military readiness. They urged the Pentagon to move quickly to certify that it was ready to lift the ban, something required by the repeal law President Barack Obama signed in December.

"Today's GAO report underscores that the 'don't ask, don't tell' law not only deprives the military of the qualified Americans it needs, but has also been a huge waste of taxpayer dollars on replacing patriots lost under this discriminatory law," Aubrey Sarvis, an Army veteran and executive director for Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, said in a statement. "These numbers remind us why it's time to move forward on certification so we can begin implementing repeal of 'don't ask, don't tell' and make a smooth transition to open service."

[Zoeisright]

1. D'oh!

Homer Simpson couldn't have done a better job.