Congressman Jerrold Nadler (NY-08), Chair of the Judiciary Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties today applauded the House Armed Services Subcommittee on Military Personnel for holding a hearing on the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT) policy.

“I strongly opposed Don’t Ask, Don’t tell when it was enacted, and I still strongly oppose it today,” said Rep. Nadler. “I applaud the Subcommittee, under the leadership of Congresswoman Susan Davis, for examining this issue. It is fundamentally unfair and un-American to discharge soldiers based on their sexual orientation. Not only do I oppose the policy on basic civil rights grounds, but there is growing evidence that the policy is wasting taxpayer dollars and hurting military effectiveness.”

DADT is the policy that prohibits any gay, lesbian or bisexual person from disclosing their sexual orientation, or from speaking about their relationships, while serving in our armed services. The policy also states that as long as servicemembers keep their sexual orientation secret, their superiors are not permitted to investigate their sexual orientation. Since its enactment, DADT has led to the dismissal of at least 12,000 servicemembers. This figure does not include those who left voluntarily or choose not to serve because of the policy.

Rep. Nadler noted that there is growing evidence that DADT is an ineffective policy. According to one Government Accountability Office report, DADT has led to the dismissal of nearly 800 specialists, including 323 linguists. That report also concluded that it has cost taxpayers as much as $1.2 billion to investigate and replace these servicemembers. Additionally, at least 24 other nations, including Canada, Israel and Great Britain, allow gays and lesbians to serve openly.

Public opinion on the issue has also shifted. In a recent Washington Post-ABC News poll, 75 percent of Americans said that gays and lesbians should be allowed to serve openly. The policy is also opposed by many former military officials, including retired General John M. Shalikashvili, the former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

In Congress, Rep. Nadler is an original co-sponsor of H.R. 1246, the Military Readiness Enhancement Act, which would replace DADT with a policy of non-discrimination.

“I hope that someday soon, gay and lesbian Americans will be able to serve their country openly and proudly,” Nadler added. “We need to end the misguided policy of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.’ History has shown that our military is able to accept into its ranks those that were not welcome before.”