Tag Archives: United States Secretary of Defense

January 24, 2013 · 12:13 AM

Secretary Of Defense Lifts Ban On Women In Combat

Many women have been fighting the system since 1994 to lift the ban on military women in combat.  It appears they finally won…

Think Progress

In a surprise move, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta removed the military ban on women in combat on Wednesday. Lifting the ban will open service on the front lines to thousands of women.

According to the Associated Press, the move was recommended by the Joint Chiefs of Staff and overturns a 1994 rule banning women from being assigned to smaller ground combat units. Smaller exemptions to the rule were passed in 2012, but the new decision opens up 238,000 positions where women were formerly banned.

Women have been traditionally barred from serving in ground combat units, such as infantry, artillery, armor or as special operations commandos. However, women have been serving in combat roles for years as well, as recent conflicts have blurred the lines of combat and non-combat duties. While the ACLU last year sued the Pentagon for the right for women to take up positions on the front line, and the Marines recently began allowing women to serve as officers, the timing of Panetta’s announcement comes as a surprise.

Some Republicans have opposed putting women in combat because of alleged physical inferiority to men. However, a survey of several NATO allies with women in front line roles in Afghanistan indicated that, far from causing problems, female officers actually performed better in intelligence-gathering roles than their male counterparts.

Military chiefs must report their initial implementation plans by May 15, and can request special exceptions until January 2016 for any positions they feel cannot be open to women.

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January 9, 2012 · 8:56 PM

Panetta admits Iran not developing nukes

Okay, so why is the GOP doing all that saber-rattling?  Is it to continue the Neocon doctrine of perpetual war?  Of course  if that were the case who benefits?  Contractors and military equipment manufacturers.  Who loses, the American people, not to mention the rise in our national debt!

The Raw Story

U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta let slip on Sunday the big open secret that Washington war hawks don’t want widely known: Iran is not developing nuclear weapons.

Appearing on CBS’s Face the Nation on Sunday, Panetta admitted that despite all the rhetoric, Iran is not pursuing the ability to split atoms with weapons, saying it is instead pursuing “a nuclear capability.”

That “capability” falls in line with what Iran has said for years: that it is developing nuclear energy facilities, not nuclear weapons.

“I think the pressure of the sanctions, the diplomatic pressures from everywhere, Europe, the United States, elsewhere, it’s working to put pressure on them,” Panetta explained on Sunday. “To make them understand that they cannot continue to do what they’re doing. Are they trying to develop a nuclear weapon? No. But we know that they’re trying to develop a nuclear capability, and that’s what concerns us. And our red line to Iran is, do not develop a nuclear weapon. That’s a red line for us.”

Republicans have been beating the drums of war in recent weeks as tensions in the Iranian gulf have soared. Iran has threatened to shut down the Strait of Hormuz, a key oil transport hub crucial to global industry, if U.S. warships return to monitor their activities.

Iran said it was planning to hold military exercises in the Strait of Hormuz in the coming weeks, and prior wargames saw the Iranians test missiles that are designed to sink warships.

President Barack Obama recently agreed to fresh sanctions on Iran targeting the country’s central bank, in hopes of slowing down their nuclear program. The European Union was also considering fresh sanctions, and details were expected later in January. The U.N., as well, has sanctioned Iran repeatedly over its nuclear program.

Iran said recently that it had created the country’s first ever nuclear fuel rod made from domestic uranium enriched at their own facilities.

Nuclear fuel enrichment is much different from enrichment for weapons. Most commercial nuclear reactors use lightly enriched uranium, which is between 3-5 percent enriched. Weapons-grade uranium must be enriched to approximately 85 percent or more of a key radioactive isotope for it to be usable in an atomic bomb.

Iran added on Monday that it had alsoenriched uranium up to 20 percent in an underground facility, explaining that the isotopes were to be used to help cancer patients.

The International Atomic Energy Agency said late last year that Iran had carried out tests that suggested they may be taking the first steps toward building a nuclear weapon, but former agency insiders disputed the claim as being misleading.

This video is from CBS News, broadcast Sunday, Jan. 8, 2012, as clipped by ThinkProgress.

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September 28, 2011 · 7:54 AM

Veterans attempt citizens arrest of Rumsfeld in Boston

Donald Rumsfeld at National Press Club, Sep 2003

Image by @mjb via Flickr

The Raw Story

Several members of the group Veterans for Peace were escorted out of the Old South Meeting House in Boston Monday night after they attempted a citizen’s arrest of former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld.

“I went down in front and looked Donald Rumsfeld in the eye and said, ‘I’m making a citizen’s arrest,’” protester Nate Goldschlag told WCVB-TV.

“He lied us into Iraq. He lied about weapons of mass destruction. He lied about Saddam Hussein being involved in 9/11.”

Three of the protesters removed from the event were with Veterans for Peace and a fourth was a member of Code Pink. One protester was arrested outside the event for allegedly using a bullhorn to assault a police officer.

Most of the 300 people who had to buy a copy of Rumsfeld’s book, “Known and Unknown,” to attend the event appeared to be fans.

“He’s one of the greatest Americans that has ever lived,” one woman said.

Watch this video from WCVB-TV, broadcast Sept. 26, 2011.

 

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April 30, 2011 · 1:06 AM

If you are a “birther” then this is what you have to believe.

I honestly planned for only one “birther” post today, but this one caught my eye…

Daily Kos

Barack Obama’s mother was Stanley Ann Dunham (November 29, 1942 – November 7, 1995), a teen mother who later got a Ph.D. in anthropology, and a woman so brilliant, so devious, so wealthy, that she was able to pull off the greatest conspiracy since the murder of Gaius Julius Caesar.

Some suspect that she may have played a role in that as well. By distracting the worlds entire military-industrial complex, multiple world leaders, the Republican Party, the Koch brothers, and the United States Supreme Court she managed to insert her Muslim, foreign born, black son into the most powerful position in the world and take command of the world’s largest military.

A stunningly beautiful piece of subversion, performed largely from beyond the grave, and one that exposes not only the high level of Muslim contamination in our intelligence networks but the very lack of American, British, German, and Interpol’s ability to perform even their most basic duties. Incredible.

All of this, mind you, without detection by the United States Intelligence Community, Director of National Intelligence, National Intelligence Council, National Counterterrorism Center, National Counterintelligence Executive, Central Intelligence Agency, National Security Agency, National Reconnaissance Office, National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, Defense Intelligence Agency, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Department of Homeland Security Office of Intelligence and Analysis , United States Intelligence Community, The Joints Chiefs of Staff, Presidents Nixon, Ford, Reagan, Carter, Clinton, and both Bush’s, Rupert Murdoch, The Director of National Intelligence, National Intelligence Council, National Counterterrorism Center, National Counterintelligence Executive, Assistant to the Secretary for Intelligence Oversight, Under Secretary of Defense for Intelligence, Under Secretary of Defense for Policy, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Networks and Information Integration, Defense Information Systems Agency, Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, Defense Protective Service, Defense Security Service, US Special Operations Command, Army Deputy Chief of Staff for Intelligence, Intelligence and Security Command, The Army, The Navy, The Marines, The Coast Guard, The United States Air Force, Dick Cheney, the Office of Naval Intelligence, Naval Security Group Command, Naval Criminal Investigative Service Official, the Republican National convention, The entire governments of Hawaii, Kenya, Southeast Asia, Canada, Europe, and Africa, as well as the Boy Scouts of America.

If you are a “birther” then that is what you believe.

That is one hell of a conspiracy to be launched by an 18 year old girl pal.

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February 21, 2011 · 8:50 AM

Rumsfeld blasts Obama’s world image

This, from a man who can’t go overseas for fear of being arrested for crimes against humanity? 

Politico

Former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld disputes the notion that President Barack Obama has made America more popular around the globe than it was under his former boss, President George W. Bush.

Asked on CNN’s “State of the Union” by host Candy Crowley whether the U.S. is looked at differently than under his tenure, Rumsfeld replied, “I don’t think there’s data that supports that.””I think [Obama] has made a practice of trying to apologize for America,” Rumsfeld said.

Rumsfeld also downplayed Obama’s Nobel Peace Prize.“He had not accomplished a thing when he got the Nobel Prize. It was given to him on hope,” Rumsfeld said. “He’d been in office 15 minutes.”

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December 20, 2010 · 8:24 PM

Gays in the Military: Still Illegal for Time Being

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The process of implementing the repeal of DADT will not be a swift one…

Politics Daily

What happens now that Congress has voted to repeal the ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ ban on gays in the military? Nothing.

For the next few months and possibly for as long as a year, gays and lesbians in uniform will still be subject to investigation and discharge if they acknowledge their sexual orientation, Pentagon officials said. Despite action in Congress to repeal it, the controversial policy banning gays from serving openly remains in effect until, in essence, until the Defense Department is good and ready to wipe if off the books.

The Pentagon issued a directive Saturday from its personnel chief, Clifford Stanley, alerting troops worldwide to the Senate vote to join the U.S. House in approving legislation to repeal DADT. The directive was expected to emphasize that the law itself has not been immediately repealed, and that the current regulations banning gays and lesbians from serving openly in the military remain in place.

“Once this legislation is signed into the law by the president, the Department of Defense will immediately proceed with the planning necessary to carry out this change carefully and methodically, but purposefully,” Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Saturday. Change is coming, Gates said, but the current policy stays in place during an implementation process.

The law itself will not be effectively pulled down until the Pentagon has had a chance to adjust regulations that relate to same-sex partners, including next-of-kin notification, family access to commissaries and military fitness centers, health insurance and other benefits.   More…

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December 3, 2010 · 3:26 PM

(Republican) Senator Scott Brown Supports Repeal of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’

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The New York Times

Senator Scott Brown, Republican of Massachusetts, said on Friday that he now supported the repeal of the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy regarding gay soldiers, after a Pentagon report this week concluded that allowing gay men and lesbians to serve openly would not pose risks to the battle readiness of troops.

As a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Mr. Brown voted last spring against repealing the policy. The repeal language is included in the annual military policy bill now before Congress.

Continue reading here… 

Sen. Scott Brown issued the following statement on the military’s Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy Friday:

I have been in the military for 31 years and counting, and have served as a subordinate and as an officer. As a legislator, I have spent a significant amount of time on military issues. During my time of service, I have visited our injured troops at Walter Reed and have attended funerals of our fallen heroes. When a soldier answers the call to serve, and risks life or limb, it has never mattered to me whether they are gay or straight. My only concern has been whether their service and sacrifice is with pride and honor.

I pledged to keep an open mind about the present policy on Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. Having reviewed the Pentagon report, having spoken to active and retired military service members and having discussed the matter privately with Defense Secretary (Robert) Gates and others, I accept the findings of the report and support repeal based on the secretary’s recommendations that repeal will be implemented only when the battle effectiveness of the forces is assured and proper preparations have been completed.

 

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November 11, 2010 · 2:02 AM

Sources: Pentagon group finds there is minimal risk to lifting gay ban during war

The Washington Post

A Pentagon study group has concluded that the military can lift the ban on gays serving openly in uniform with only minimal and isolated incidents of risk to the current war efforts, according to two people familiar with a draft of the report, which is due to President Obama on Dec. 1.

More than 70 percent of respondents to a survey sent to active-duty and reserve troops over the summer said the effect of repealing the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy would be positive, mixed or nonexistent, said two sources familiar with the document. The survey results led the report’s authors to conclude that objections to openly gay colleagues would drop once troops were able to live and serve alongside them.

One source, who has read the report in full, summarized its findings in a series of conversations this week. The source declined to state his position on whether or not to lift the ban, insisting it did not matter. He said he felt compelled to share the information out of concern that groups opposed to ending the ban would mischaracterize the findings. The long, detailed and nuanced report will almost certainly be used by opponents and supporters of repeal legislation to bolster their positions in what is likely to be a heated and partisan congressional debate.

President Obama has vowed to end the ban. Senior Pentagon officials requested the survey to address areas in which the repeal might cause conflicts that could hinder the military’s ability to fight.     Continued…

 

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