White House, defense leaders announce DADT repeal certification

In conjunction with the Secretary of Defense and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, President Obama signed a historic document Friday certifying the U.S. military’s readiness to move forward with implementation of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ repeal.

“Today, we have taken the final major step toward ending the discriminatory ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ law that undermines our military readiness and violates American principles of fairness and equality,” said Obama. “In accordance with the legislation that I signed into law last December, I have certified and notified Congress that the requirements for repeal have been met.”

In the President’s words, DADT will end, “once and for all,” on September 20, 2011 – exactly 60 days after Friday’s landmark certification.

Defense Secretary Panetta and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Mullen released statements corroborating the President’s sentiments and emphasizing that, with DADT’s final repeal, the U.S. military will, in Panetta’s words, be “closer to achieving the goal that is at the foundation of America – equality and dignity for all.”

“My confidence in our ability to accomplish this work rests primarily on the fact that our people are capable, well-led and thoroughly professional,” Mullen explained. “I have never served with finer men and women. They will, I am certain, carry out repeal and continue to serve this country with the same high standards and dignity that have defined the U.S. military throughout our history.”

Read President Obama’s complete official statement below:

Statement by the President on Certification of Repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell

“Today, we have taken the final major step toward ending the discriminatory ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ law that undermines our military readiness and violates American principles of fairness and equality.  In accordance with the legislation that I signed into law last December, I have certified and notified Congress that the requirements for repeal have been met.  ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ will end, once and for all, in 60 days—on September 20, 2011.

As Commander in Chief, I have always been confident that our dedicated men and women in uniform would transition to a new policy in an orderly manner that preserves unit cohesion, recruitment, retention and military effectiveness.  Today’s action follows extensive training of our military personnel and certification by Secretary Panetta and Admiral Mullen that our military is ready for repeal.  As of September 20th, service members will no longer be forced to hide who they are in order to serve our country.  Our military will no longer be deprived of the talents and skills of patriotic Americans just because they happen to be gay or lesbian.

I want to commend our civilian and military leadership for moving forward in the careful and deliberate manner that this change requires, especially with our nation at war.  I want to thank all our men and women in uniform, including those who are gay or lesbian, for their professionalism and patriotism during this transition.  Every American can be proud that our extraordinary troops and their families, like earlier generations that have adapted to other changes, will only grow stronger and remain the best fighting force in the world and a reflection of the values of justice and equality that the define us as Americans.”