According to Servicemembers United’s “annual fiscal year Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell discharge statistic combines the total number of discharges reported by the Department of Defense, which was 428, with the total number of discharges reported by the Department of Homeland Security for the Coast Guard, which was 15. This brings the official 17-year total, according to the Department of Defense and the Department of Homeland Security, to 13,425 discharges under “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.”
2009’s Total DADT Discharges: 443
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Lanjier
What a great patriot that Obama is, letting the veterans and soldiers under his command get thrown in the street after putting their lives on the line for this country. Disgusting.
WildCat
So, how many were there in 2008? Is this number higher or lower than under the Bush Administration or the Clinton Administration?
Per the SLDN website, 443 is the fewest discharges since DADT was enacted. But why would Queerty bother with “facts” when it gets in the way of the site’s ability to rile its readers?
Cam
No. 2 · WildCat
So, how many were there in 2008? Is this number higher or lower than under the Bush Administration or the Clinton Administration?
Per the SLDN website, 443 is the fewest discharges since DADT was enacted. But why would Queerty bother with “facts” when it gets in the way of the site’s ability to rile its readers?
_________________
Yeah, it also has to do with the fact that people are being brought up on charges under DADT, but they are holding their hearings over because they can’t afford to lose them if they are overseas.
However, the fact that you would try to say that nearly 500 gay and lesbians, who are qualified, losing their jobs through bigotry is somehow a good thing just shows that you are way more loyal to your political party than you are to your fellow human beings.
JamieMcG
But at least he signed that little memo saying gays could visit each other in the hospital…whoops…that is unless you’re fighting and dying for your country.
Michael @ LeonardMatlovich.com
@WildCat:
Here’s a fact you left out, that, I’ll give you the benefit of not knowing: In January of 2009, there were only 11 discharged per the Pentagon.
Subtracting those from 443, leaves 432 discharged during the 11 months Obama was President the entire time. 432 divided by 11 = 39 per month so the discharge rate under Obama WENT UP!
Further, Servicemembers United release today goes on to say:
Whatever the actual numbers there is NO excuse for a SINGLE discharge by the President who spoke 10 months ago of the “URGENCY” of stopping gay discharges because they are not only unjust but “weaken national security” when he has full authority under powers given the Presidency by Congress in 1983 to, regardless of any law, stop any discharges at any time in the name of national security.
And yet those discharges continue even as you’re reading this; day after day after day after day.
The President could stop those discharges today with the proverbial stroke of a pen and he could force Congress to repeal with personal phone calls to only a handful of holdout Members who, to the contrary per reluctant critic Barney Frank, are using his current silence as an excuse not to repeal.
Kieran
443 Americans were tossed out of the military in 2009 because of their sexual orientation? And this is the Twenty-First Century we’re living in right? And the United States of America has a DEMOCRATIC President and the US Senate and Congress both have comfortable DEMOCRATIC majorities. And Obama’s 2008 campaign slogan was ironically, “YES WE CAN!” As far as those 443 Americans are concerned Obama’s slogan should be, “No we can’t.”
tinkerbell
Without me, that number would have been 442. 12Jan09 was my discharge date.
adman
Why any member of a disenfranchised group would listen to anything the President says is beyond me. And I mean minorities, the poor, Women, immigrants, anyone. Well, maybe a disclaimer re: immigrants, since they’ll get some reform that will really be to the benefit of the Plutocrats. That is the straight ones will, not the gays and/or women, of course.