Rossi backer opines on ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’
Congress passed the “don’t ask, don’t tell” law and Congress should decide whether to keep, change or repeal it, a Republican senator campaigning with Dino Rossi said Friday.
Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., a member of the Armed Services Committee, agreed with Rossi’s stance in Thursday’s debate that Congress should wait for a Pentagon study on a policy that requires the discharge of any openly homosexual service member.
The Obama administration should appeal a decision reinstating Maj. Margaret Witt, a Spokane nurse in the Air Force Reserves, and a separate decision from California that the law is unconstitutional, Thune said.
“There’s a law in place, Congress enacted it, it’s worked well for 15 years and now the courts have started to weigh in. The more appropriate place for it to be decided is in the people’s body, the Congress,” he said.
Rossi reiterated he would wait for the report rather than basing his opinion on a single court case. His opponent, Sen. Patty Murray, said in their debate Thursday night she believes the law should be repealed out of fairness to homosexuals now in the military and those who want to serve.
Thune attended a breakfast for Rossi in Spokane, then the two met with a group of veterans to discuss issues like homelessness, unemployment and medical care. They heard a wide range of suggestions, from prodding the Pentagon to award more contracts to companies owned by veterans to turning Veterans Affairs hospitals into private facilities and giving vouchers for medical care.
Ron Hardin of SNAP estimated that 20 percent of the homeless people his Spokane-based nonprofit organization sees are veterans, and while many receive a monthly assistance payment from the state, “how do you find houses for someone who lives on $339 a month?”
Hardin said later that while Murray has been strong on veterans’ issues, he appreciated the chance to discuss those issues with Rossi in case he wins. “This is an economic issue; it extends beyond the political landscape.”