Assemblyman Joins the Battle Against Gays in Military

Elbowing into a debate that has polarized the nation, an Orange County assemblyman began a push Wednesday to get the Legislature to urge President Clinton to drop his efforts to lift a ban on homosexuals in the military.

The resolution authored by freshman Assemblyman Bill Morrow (R-Oceanside), a former Marine Corps lawyer at Camp Pendleton, suggests that Clinton “may not have a clear understanding” of the “unique requirement” of military life because the President never served in the armed forces.

“Like it or not, having gays in the military is not conducive to good morale of the troops,” Morrow said Wednesday. “Certainly, I don’t see this as gay bashing. I think that’s missing the issue. The bottom line is that gays would affect the good order and discipline in the military.”

Morrow said he expects to get backing for his resolution--co-authored by Assemblyman Mickey Conroy (R-Orange), a former Marine Corps pilot--from all Assembly Republicans, most notably the veterans among them. He also hopes to enlist the support of veterans’ organizations to lobby lawmakers on the issue.

Even as Morrow was beginning his fight, gay rights groups--including several made up of former military personnel--began marshaling efforts to scuttle the resolution.

“It’s not unexpected at all,” said Raelani Madsen-Azada, a Fullerton resident and former Army dental lab technician forming an Orange County chapter of Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Veterans of America. “We started getting calls about it last week. I guess Bill Morrow is trying to make a name for himself.”

Although the resolution is symbolic, gay rights advocates said, it needs to be defeated.

“This sort of thing only fosters hate,” said Lynn Strawbridge, a co-founder of Twin Spirit Veteran Assn., a Northern California group of 65 gay or lesbian former military members.

“I know so many people who served and fought for their country for freedoms that they cannot enjoy now,” Strawbridge said. “The bottom line is that for the $27 million they spend ferreting out gays in the military, they could sure buy a lot of shower curtains.”

The resolution has already earned the opposition of one Orange County assemblyman--Democrat Tom Umberg of Garden Grove.

“It’s a waste of time and money for us to be telling the U.S. Congress how to do their job when we have plenty of work to do here in California,” Umberg said. “I just don’t think Congress is waiting with bated breath to find out what the California Legislature thinks.”

Despite such criticisms, Morrow said he hopes the measure can eventually be pushed to the Assembly floor for debate. But even some supporters raised doubt that it would get that far.

Assemblyman B.T. Collins (R-Sacramento), a backer of Morrow’s resolution, said it would probably not escape the Assembly Rules Committee, which is headed by Assemblyman John Burton (D-San Francisco), whose district has one of the largest concentrations of homosexuals in the state.

Collins said the effort by Morrow is worthy. “For me it’s not a moral question,” he said. “I’m saying that it wouldn’t be good for the efficacy of the military.”

Morrow’s resolution says the ban on homosexuals in the military “does not imply their lack of courage, dedication to duty, nor their patriotism or loyalty to the United States.”

But the resolution goes on to draw a parallel between the ban on gays and military policies excluding applicants because of abnormal height, weight, physical problems and mental disabilities. It also notes that the Joint Chiefs of Staff and numerous veterans organizations oppose lifting the ban.