WASHINGTON, D.C.—Servicemembers Legal Defense Network ( SLDN ) , a national, legal services and policy organization dedicated to ending "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" ( DADT ) , issued a statement Nov. 7 regarding U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates' call for the Senate to act on repeal this year during the lame-duck session.

SLDN Executive Director Aubrey Sarvis said, "We welcome Secretary Gates call for the Senate to act on repeal in the lame duck session. Indeed, the Senate should call up the defense bill reported out of committee and pass it before it goes home for the year. If the President, Majority Leader Reid, Secretary Gates, and a handful of Republican senators are committed to passing the comprehensive defense bill, there is ample time to do so. Any talk about a watered down defense bill, whereby the 'Don't Ask' revisions would be stripped out, is unacceptable and offensive to the gay and lesbian service members who risk their lives every day."