Marine Corps Chief James Amos Makes Little Sense

USMC Head James Amos: DADT Repeal Could Cause Marines To Lose Their Legs
General James Amos, Commandant of the USMC, says the "distraction" of Openly Gay Soldiers will cause more casualties on the battlefield. "When your life hangs on a line, on the intuitive behavior of the young man ... who sits to your right and your left, you don't want anything distracting you," Amos told reporters at the Pentagon. "I don't want to lose any Marines to distraction. I don't want to have any Marines that I'm visiting at Bethesda (Hospital) with no legs," he said. He added that "m...

Rep. Buck McKeon Praises Gen. Amos, Says Repealing DADT Right Now Would Be An 'Affront To The Military' (VIDEO)
WASHINGTON -- Rep. Buck McKeon (R-Calif.), the incoming chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, said on Wednesday that Democrats' last-minute push to Repeal the Military's ban on Openly Gay servicemembers has stalled the passage of the larger defense authorization bill. Passing a Repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" by the end of the year, he added, would be an "affront to the military" because it wouldn't allow time for full and proper consideration of the matter. "It will have such far...

Next Afghan debate: How deep a withdrawal
Published: Dec. 16, 2010 at 10:41 AM U.S. Marines participate in a security patrol in Gorgak district of Helmand Province of Afghanistan on August 25, 2010. As of August 22nd, according to the Department of Defense some 1,223 American service members have lost their lives in a conflict that started close to nine years ago after 9/11. UPI/Hossein Fatemi WASHINGTON, Dec. 16 (UPI) -- With the time line for drawing down U.S. Troops in Afghanistan on track, the real debate will be how many Troops to ...

Marine Commandant James Amos Suggests 'Distracted' Troops Could Lose Legs in Combat if 'DADT' is Repealed
Marine Commandant General James Amos is speaking out again against "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" Repeal, telling reporters in his Pentagon dining room that after reading and re-reading the Pentagon report he arrived at the conclusion that repeal of the measure would subject service members to dangers like losing legs in battle, because their combat-readiness would be "distracted" by Gays serving beside them. Ultimately, the voices of forward-fighting combat Marines who worr...

'Don't ask, don't tell' repeal goes to Senate again. Has anything changed? (The Christian Science Monitor)
Washington – The House today passed a Repeal of the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy banning gays from serving openly in the Military, but it’s not clear that the Senate can muster the time or political will to move it to the floor before the end of the 111th Congress. Only last week, Senate Republicans blocked a bid to Repeal of the Clinton-era ban as part of the Fiscal Year 2011 defense authorization bill. Democrats fell three votes short of the 60 votes needed to brea

House OKs Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal
(NewsCore) - The US House of Representatives Wednesday passed a standalone bill to Repeal the "Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell" policy that bans Openly Gay Soldiers from serving in the US Military by a vote of 250-175. A simple majority vote was needed for the measure to pass. Rep. Patrick Murphy (D-Pa.) and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) introduced the free-standing bill, which mirrored Legislation proposed last week by Connecticut’s Independent Senator Joseph Lieberman, foll...

NATO Mistakenly Kills 4 Afghan Troops
(Dec. 16) -- A NATO airstrike mistakenly killed four Afghan Soldiers, and a Roadside Bomb killed 14 Afghan civilians in a minibus on their way to a Wedding in the country's west, Afghan officials said today. Word of the Deaths comes just hours before the Obama Administration announced findings of his review of U.S. policy in Afghanistan, where U.S. Troops have been mired in a nine-year-old war. An early summary document excerpted by The Washington Post cites "progress" against al-Qaida in Afghan...

America's New Mercenaries
© Rodrigo Abd / AP Photo A private security contractor stands in front of a Helicopter departing from Combat Outpost Terra Nova in Kandahar, Afghanistan on July 19, 2010. As American commanders meet this week for the Afghanistan review, Obama is hiring Military contractors at a rate that would make Bush blush. Tim Shorrock on the Blackwater heirs. Top U.S. commanders are meeting this week to plan for the next phase of the Afghanistan war. In Iraq, meanwhile, gains are tentative and in da...

Capehart: DADT repeal -- Over to the Senate
With ease and dispatch, the House of Representatives did what the Senate has failed to do -- twice: pass a bill to Repeal don't ask don't tell (DADT), the ban on gay men and Lesbians serving openly in the Military. Mind you, such Legislation cleared that chamber in May as part of the Defense Authorization Act. But by a 250-175 vote, including 15 Republican votes, the House voted to send a stand-alone measure to the upper chamber. Now the ball is in Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid's hands. A...

The war in Afghanistan: Still pouring
THOSE hoping for a definitive answer on whether America’s strategy in Afghanistan stands a reasonable chance of success are going to have to wait a bit longer. As The Economist went to press, Barack Obama was about to deliver the results of the progress review he promised a year ago when announcing his decision to commit a further 30,000 Troops to the fight. But as Anthony Cordesman of the Washington-based Centre for Strategic and International Studies observes, it is hard to “judge ...

Afghans say NATO Strike Killed 4 Troops
Like this Story? Share it: The latest news and analysis on the War in Afghanistan and the debate in Washington over its future. (CBS/AP) An Afghan Military official says a NATO air strike has killed four Afghan Soldiers in the country's south, mistaking them for Militants. A spokesman for the Defense Ministry says the Afghan Soldiers had left their base in Helmand Province on Wednesday night for a patrol when they came under fire from NATO planes. Gen. Mohammad Zahir Azimi says NATO told the A...

FRC Losing It Over DADT
How many brave men and women are liberals willing to sacrifice so that Homosexuals can flaunt their lifestyle? The only reason for changing the present policy is if it would help the Military accomplish its mission. So far, no one has produced a single reason how it would. Until then, the Senate has to ask itself: Do they want the blood of innocent Soldiers on their hands just to appease the political base of Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.) and Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.)? If they can live with that, then ...

Rep: Gays in Military Threaten U.S.
The Huffington Post reports: In the heat of the debate over the “don’t ask, don’t tell” Repeal bill, which was eventually passed by the House Wednesday by a 250 to 175 margin, Rep. Louie Gohmert (R-Texas) delivered a floor Speech railing against overturning the Military protocol on the grounds that allowing gay servicemembers to serve openly would be a threat to America’s “existence.” Here are his comments, via ThinkProgress: GOHMERT: To my friend who ...

In Opposing DADT Repeal, Republicans Echo Gen. Amos Comment That Gays Cost Lives
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Marine Commandant Gen. James Amos — who has opposed repealing Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell — said that if Congress lifts the ban against open service and allows gays to serve without hiding their Sexual Orientation, the Marines could be so distracted that they would die in the line of duty. “I don’t want to lose any Marines to distraction. I don’t want to have any Marines that I’m visiting at Bethesda (Hospital) with no legs,”

White House Refuses To Condemn Marine Commandants Comments On Dont Ask, Dont Tell
White House Refuses To Condemn Marine Commandant’s Comments On Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs refused to directly condemn the Marine Commandant’s suggestion that repealing Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell would have the effect of killing Marines in the line of duty, saying simply that the Commandant’s views are “well known.” Earlier today, Gen. James Amos — who has publicly opposed lifting the ban — said in...

US House votes to lift military gay ban
The US House of Representatives voted on Wednesday to end the US Military ban on gays serving openly, leaving it to the Senate to seize what backers of Repeal say may be their last chance for years. By a 250-175 margin, MPs approved a stand-alone bill to scrap the 1993 policy, popularly known as "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," that requires gays to keep quiet about their Sexual Orientation or face dismissal. "'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' doesn't contribute to our National Security and it contravenes our Ame...

US House votes to lift military gay ban
The US House of Representatives voted to end the US Military ban on gays serving openly, leaving it to the Senate to seize what backers of Repeal say may be their last chance for years. US President Barack Obama, in a statement shortly after the vote, called ending the prohibition "the right thing to do" and said all those who risk their lives for their country must be "treated fairly and equally." By a 250-175 margin, the House approved a stand-alone bill to scrap the 1993 policy, popularly kno...

Republicans Cite Amos Gays Cost Lives Comment To Oppose DADT Repeal
Republicans Cite Amos’ Gays Cost Lives Comment To Oppose DADT Repeal Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Marine Commandant Gen. James Amos — who has opposed repealing Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell — said that if Congress lifts the ban against open service and allows gays to serve without hiding their Sexual Orientation, the Marines could be so distracted that they would die in the line of duty. “I don’t want to lose any Marines to distraction. I don’t want to have an

Marine commandant concluded DADT repeal may risk lives
ARLINGTON, Va. — The nation’s top Marine Corps officer said he could not endorse a change in the “don’t ask, don’t tell” law that could cause distractions or endanger the lives of Marines in combat. Ultimately, the voices of forward-fighting combat Marines who worried about unit cohesion in the Pentagon’s survey swayed Marine Corps Commandant Gen. James Amos, leading him to recommend that Congress not Repeal the law banning Openly Gay Americans from mi...

Marine general suggests repeal of 'don't ask' could result in casualties
The Marine Corps' top general suggested Tuesday that allowing gays to serve openly in the Military could result in more casualties because their presence on the battlefield would pose "a distraction." This Story Marine general suggests Repeal of 'don't ask' could result in casualties Federal Eye: "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" now what? Federal Eye: 'Don't ask' procedural vote fails 'Don't ask, don't tell' report: Little risk to allowing gays to serve openly Federal Eye: 'Don't ask' splitt...

Plymouth-based Royal Marines, soldiers and sailors to be sent to Afghanistan in April
PLYMOUTH-based Royal Marines, Soldiers and sailors are to be be sent to Afghanistan in April next year, the Ministry of Defence said today. ​Secretary of State for Defence Liam Fox announced the next Deployment of British Troops in a written ministerial statement this morning. Plymouth's 42 Commando Royal Marines and 29 Commando Regiment, as well as Stonehouse's 30 Commando and elements of the city's 3 Commando headquarters, will replace the current brigade in theatre alongside elements of...

'Over There': The Final Legacy
“Over there, over there, send the word, send the word, over there. That the Yanks are coming, the Yanks are coming, and we won’t be back, till it’s over over there.” These were the words proudly sung by the American Doughboys as they headed “over there” to fight for freedom in the Great World War. Nearly a century later, the final legacy of the American Doughboy is in our hands. How will we write the next pages of the final chapter? At 109 years old, it is re...

Joe Lieberman, Civil Rights Hero
That woke you up, didn't it? But Lieberman, who claims to have rounded up 62 votes in the Senate for DADT Repeal, has, along with Susan Collins, been indispensable in keeping this fast-closing door ajar. What he seems to get is that this is not just some constituency measure, or some minor matter - but a moral matter. We ask young men and women to go into the line of chaos, hatred and Murder in order to keep us safe. Many have gone places and seen things and done things this past decade fe...

Afghan Withdrawal Imminent
American forces in Afghanistan will begin withdrawing next summer after blunting the momentum of the Taliban - although it’s unclear whether the gains that U.S. Soldiers have achieved are sustainable. Taliban advances have been “arrested in much of the country and reversed in some key areas,” according to an optimistic assessment of the war released Wednesday by the administration of Barack Obama. As a result, a “responsible reduction” of U.S. Troops can begin...

US House votes to lift military gay ban
The US House of Representatives voted on Wednesday to end the US Military ban on gays serving openly, leaving it to the Senate to seize what backers of Repeal say may be their last chance for years. By a 250-175 margin, MPs approved a stand-alone bill to scrap the 1993 policy, popularly known as "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," that requires gays to keep quiet about their Sexual Orientation or face dismissal. "'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' doesn't contribute to our National Security and it contravenes our Ame...