Republican Rebukes Pace, but Defense Secretary Defends 'Don't Ask' Policy

March 13, 2007 — -- In a rare rebuke of the nation's top military officer, Sen. John Warner, R-Va., says he strongly disagrees with Gen. Peter Pace's views that homosexuality is "immoral."

"I respectfully, but strongly, disagree with the chairman's view that homosexuality is immoral," Warner said in a statement released by his office.

Warner was reacting to Pace's unusual defense of the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy on gays in the military.

Pace, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said in an interview with the Chicago Tribune that he supported the policy because he believed homosexuality was "immoral" and that the military "should not condone immoral acts."

And Pace is not backing down. In a statement released this afternoon, he clarified his comments, saying, "In expressing my support for the current policy, I also offered some personal opinions about moral conduct. … I should have focused more on my support of the policy and less on my personal moral views."

During his interview with the Chicago Tribune on Monday, however, Pace talked at length about his personal views.

"My upbringing is such that I believe there are certain things, certain types of conduct that are immoral," Pace said. "I believe that military members who sleep with other military members' wives are immoral in their conduct, in that we should not tolerate that. I believe that homosexual acts between individuals are immoral and that we should not condone immoral acts."

Military experts, however, say morality was never the basis of the policy, which says gays may serve in the military only if they keep their sexual orientations private and don't engage in homosexual activity.

"Morality was never the basis of the policy," said retired Gen. Jack Keane. "It was about unit cohesion."

In fact, in July 1993, Colin Powell, who was then chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and drafted the "don't ask" policy, endorsed the policy with these words to the House Armed Services Committee: "It is not in place in the military, those of us in senior leadership positions, to make moral or religious judgments with respect to homosexuality. Our perspective, and the only perspective we should bring to this issue, is the unique perspective of the military and what is best for military effectiveness."

Some in the military argued that having openly gay service members living in military barracks could cause a breakdown of "good order and discipline."

The "don't ask, don't tell" policy was drafted in 1993 by Powell, and it was passed by Congress and signed into law by President Clinton.

In an interview with the Pentagon channel today, Defense Secretary Robert Gates was asked his views on the policy. He offered a much different answer than Pace.

"I think personal opinion really doesn't have a place here," Gates said. "What's important is that we have a law, a statute that governs 'don't ask, don't tell.' That's the policy of this department. And it's my responsibility to execute that policy as effectively as we can. As long as the law is what it is, that's what we'll do."