New Policy Will Allow Military to Expel Gays

As President Clinton nears an announcement on the status of gays in the U.S. military, the White House said Thursday that the policy will allow expulsions for a wide range of homosexual conduct both on and off military bases.

“There will still be, as there always have been, strict rules guiding conduct in the military,” White House spokeswoman Dee Dee Myers told reporters.

Asked if Clinton is backing away from his 1992 campaign pledge to lift the military ban on homosexuals, Myers said: “I wouldn’t characterize it as a retreat.”

But Myers reaffirmed the President’s commitment “that people ought not to be excluded on the basis of (sexual) status alone.” She did not explain how the new policy would preserve that commitment.

Clinton, who White House officials said could announce his decision as early as today, is expected to argue that the policy will redeem his campaign promise to lift a longstanding military ban on homosexuals, and that further steps may be possible later.

White House officials have told several lawmakers that under the new policy, revealing one’s homosexuality, as well as other behaviors, could lead to dismissal on grounds of misconduct.

Those behaviors would include public displays of same-sex affection considered “suggestive,” and living in a one-bedroom apartment with a member of the same sex. A gay individual could display a photograph of a partner, but if asked, he or she would be expected to deflect inquiries about the relationship.

Individuals would be allowed to reveal their homosexuality to military chaplains, doctors and lawyers without fear they would be discharged.

As the time for his decision approached, Clinton pored over the details of a recommendation from military leaders and Defense Secretary Les Aspin widely described as “don’t ask, don’t tell.”

Under it, homosexuals would be allowed to serve in the armed forces only if they keep their sexual orientation secret and do not publicly engage in a wide variety of activities, like hand holding and same-sex dancing, that would be classified as “homosexual conduct.”

In exchange, the military would stop asking recruits if they are homosexual and would investigate alleged homosexual conduct only if presented with “credible evidence” of such behavior.

Clinton’s announcement is certain to provoke a storm of controversy among gay and lesbian activists, who have argued that under “don’t ask, don’t tell,” homosexual service members would still be subject to humiliating investigations and expulsion for reasons unrelated to their job performance.

Myers stressed Thursday that Clinton “may not accept Secretary Aspin’s recommendations exactly as presented.” She said that the President is “interested in what the practical effects of the policy would be, how it would be effected in practice in the day-to-day life of the military and . . . trying to understand the concerns of the military versus the concerns of some of the individuals.”

Clinton and Aspin met Wednesday night and again late Thursday to discuss the policy, according to White House and Pentagon officials. Aspin also met with White House advisers George Stephanopoulos and David Gergen and two openly gay members of Congress, Massachusetts Democratic Reps. Barney Frank and Gerry Studds, to discuss details of the plan.

At the Pentagon, Capt. Michael Doubleday said that the Administration wants the new policy executed on Oct. 1, delaying its effect to give the military substantial time to negotiate and flesh out the fine points.

Oct. 1 also is the day following the retirement of Gen. Colin L. Powell, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who with the other chiefs opposes lifting the ban outright.

The emerging policy reportedly has run into criticism within the Administration.

The Sun in Baltimore reported Thursday that Atty. Gen. Janet Reno has tried to persuade the Pentagon not to call for “don’t ask, don’t tell” because she and Justice Department lawyers believe it would be difficult to uphold in court challenges. Specifically, they have argued that a policy defining speech as “conduct” is a legal line potentially difficult to defend.

“The President should . . . read his Constitution and listen to his attorney general, who has advised him that ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ violates an individual’s First Amendment rights to free speech,” Rep. Patricia Schroeder (D-Colo.) said Thursday.

While Reno has not actively participated in the deliberations over lifting the ban, her views are key, since the Justice Department would be called upon to defend the policy against a certain spate of court challenges.

Justice Department spokesman Joseph Krovisky declined comment on the attorney general’s views.

In New York, Kevin Cathcart, executive director of the Lambda Legal Defense Fund, said his organization and the American Civil Liberties Union’s lesbian and gay rights project were prepared to file suit if Clinton’s policy restricts open speech by homosexuals or discriminates on the basis of sexuality.