DISTRIBUTE WIDELY… please

I don’t generally engage in reaction-blogging, but I just now finished watching a live town-hall meeting in Florida with the prez, wherein the last person called upon asked Obama why he hadn’t fulfilled his campaign promise to abolish the military’s homophobic policy of don’t-ask-don’t-tell.

Obama meandered on for a few moments about domestic partner benefits, without promising to do a single thing, and completely blew off the don’t-ask-don’t-tell question… the one question on which he has the absolute authority to carry out his campaign promise of abolition by virtue of his position as the Commander-in-Chief of the United States Armed Forces.

He cannot unilaterally repeal the law, which Congress must do, but as Commander-in-Chief he can legally order the immediate suspension of its enforcement; and he has summary relief authority over all officers who refuse to comply.

Obama could abolish this policy by fiat, in other words, with a single order; and he not only has refused to do it, he refused to answer this young man’s question in front of millions of witnesses.

Here is an opportunity for anyone and everyone who wants this bigoted, hateful policy abolished to join our voices in protest, today, right now, with the force that is available to such an essential fraction of potential Democratic support (that being those of us who hate this policy), to make a credible threat that we will withhold any future support for Obama or the Democratic Party if he does not end don’t-ask-don’t-tell. Because the Massachussets massacre of last week has that opportunistic party on its heels right now, and the leader of that party is demonstrating his abject refusal to carry out a categorical promise that is immediately within his power to fulfill.

There are only two state-sanctioned institutions left that are unequivocally and completely homophobic: marriage and the military. There are aspects of these institutions that are problematic aside from this inhering homophobia; but that is not the issue at hand. Pushing on this one place - military policy that Obama can dictate - right now is a practice of the art of the possible; and it is - imho - the inescapable responsibility of any of us who claim to be in solidarity for the struggle to overthrow this particular brand of hatred and prejudice.

The conact site for the Office of the President is http://www.whitehouse.gov/CONTACT/.

Here is a sample note.

Dear President Obama,

Your refusal to answer a direct question on Wednesday, January 7, 2010, with regard to the military’s don’t-ask-don’t-tell policy, and your campaign promise to abolish the same, is a source of the deepest dismay. This is a policy that you, as Commander-in-Chief of the United States Armed Forces, have the power to change with the issuance of a single direct order, suspending this law’s enforcement by military officers - over whom you have absolute authority - until its legal abolition is accomplished.

Your refusal to do so, and your refusal to answer that question at the Florida town-hall meeting, has convinced me that I can no longer support either you or your party.

I am herein declaring my intention to refrain from voting for a single member of the Democratic Party in any election henceforth until this abhorent and hateful policy is abolished.

This party has repeatedly and consistently taken the opponents of this policy for granted; and it seems that only an ultimatum this clear and unequivocal will be enough to overcome the cowardice of elected officials in the face of bigots at all levels of the military.

The response that we need Democrats to protect the rest of us from Republicans is tantamount to blackmail. We are not havng it anymore.

Sincerely,