European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - May 17, 1993, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Monday May 17, 1993  Star and stripes a Page 9 vote on military budget delayed ,. -. "M. House lawmakers fear Clinton would lose out on Gay ban Issue by Eric schm1tt the new York times Washington fearing an embarrassing set Back for. President Clinton House democrats have postponed a vote on the 1994 military budget to pre vent republicans from attaching an amendment pre serving the military s ban on homosexuals congressional officials  House armed services committee had been scheduled to begin considering the Pentagon s proposed. $263 by Ion budget this week. The panel s chairman rep. Ronald v. Dellums d-calif., and House speaker Thom As s. Foley d-wash., agreed to wait until late june. The budget is for the fiscal year that begins oct. 1. Dellums and Foley delayed the committee vote mainly because the Pentagon has not yet delivered de tailed budget documents to Congress senior congressional aides said. But the lawmakers also feared that republicans could successfully approve an amendment to the budget codifying the ban before defense Secre tary los Aspin submits a draft executive order to Clin ton by july 15. Rep. Robert k. , r-calif., has introduced a Bill to write into Law the ban on Gay men and lesbians in the armed forces. Ninety three other representatives including six democrats support Trie legislation. If a vote were taken in the committee now my guess is the president would lose a senior House aide said adding that the outcome largely depended on the details of the Pentagon plan. A majority of the Senate armed services committee endorses the ban but administration officials have counted on the House panel to be More supportive. Dellums for instance is a staunch Backer of allowing declared homosexuals in the military. Strong sentiment against lifting the ban even in the House panel demonstrates the difficult task ahead for the administration in drafting a policy lawmakers can sup  " " a. ,. Nunn orchestration of scr visit assailed Washington a the photo graph in hundreds of newspapers around the country showed two senators examining the narrow sleeping quarters of a sub Marine As three Young sailors crowded in their bunks stared Back. It was one More boost to sen. Sam Nunn s Campaign to Sway Public opinion for the ban on homosexuals serving openly in the military and yet another blow to president Clinton a efforts to end the prohibition. That photograph has done More dam age to this Issue than a thousand generals testifying against it said David Smith of the Campaign for military service an amalgam of groups working to end the ban. Bunks and showers stir hysteria. Sam Nunn knows that he said. Nunn s hearings Stem from a controversy that has plagued Clinton in his first Days in office. Determined to repeal the ban on Gays in the military the president ran into a rebellion in Congress and compromised. The ban would remain but recruits would no longer be asked their sexual orientation. In the meantime defense Secretary Les Aspin would draw up a for Mal order by july 15 to end the ban. Nunn pledged fair thorough and objective hearings during the interim but his approach has its critics. The meetings Are designed to give Sam Nunn the advice he wanted to hear said Ann Lewis a political consultant and sister of rep. Barney Frank d-mass., one of two openly Gay members of Congress. Three sailors lying Down in the bunk that is almost too much of orchestrating said Claibourne Darden a demo cratic political analyst from Georgia it s As if they lie Down and say they Don twant some Pervert Between them. The trip to Norfolk last monday was not the first time that Nunn d-ga., and sen. John w. Warner r-va., had been on a submarine. They Are longtime Mem Bers of the armed services committee Nunn is chairman Warner is the Sec Ond ranking Republican. Yet there they were Nunn warn Erand other members of the committee visit ing bunks bathrooms and showers on sub Gay lawmaker backs silent Rule for military Boston a rep. Barney Frank one of two openly Gay con Gressmen from Massachusetts says keeping silent about sexual Orienta Tion May be an acceptable condition for Gays in the military. The right of a Marine to declare his membership in the National Gay and lesbian task Force and Wear the appropriate insignia has never been part of this Issue Frank told the Boston Globe. We arc not talking about people who Are burning with the desire to announce their sexual orientation the Democrat said in the interview published sunday. That s not Why you go into the  president Clinton s wants to lift the ban on Gays serving in the military. Sen. Sam Nunn d-ga., has proposed Don t ask Don t Tell policy that would allow Gays to serve in secret but the ban would remain in place. Some have characterized the Issue As one of fundamental civil rights but Frank said it goes farther than that. That s important Frank said but rep. Barney Frank you also have the lives of the Young men and women who have volunteered to serve their country and who happen to be Gay men and lesbians. And i think the primary goal for people like myself should be to protect their rights and their lives rather than to worry about broader symbolic  marines and ships at the Norfolk naval base in Virginia with news Media in Tow. The american people have to know Nunn said when questioned about the necessity of the visit and the criticism. We have taken every suggested witness they be had a whole lot of names he said of the Gay rights groups. We re doing the Best we can. Well never have a hearing to please  Nunn has proposed a Compromise that would include not questioning recruits about their sexual orientation imposing a strict code of conduct and not ferreting out homosexuals. But it would retain the ban on those who openly assert their homosexuality. He amplified on his proposed Compro Mise saturday explaining that it would be permissible for a Gay Soldier to answer questions about his or her sexual Orienta Tion on a confidential form such As a Security clearance questionnaire. If you go on Ted Koppel or you March in a Parade i think you have announced openly your Basic sexual Price. Tation he said on can s Bvans and Novak  if there would be different Stan Dards of conduct for Gay  sol Diers Nunn did not answer directly. You can t draw the line on base or off base but i certainly Don t envision that we re going to have sodomy squads or sex squads going around trying to look at peo ple s private lives he said unless the individual brings to the attention of the peo ple around him his sexual orientation in a Way that is obvious and open then it seems to me they ought to be  a Day after the. Tour at Norfolk Nunn presided Over a hearing in Washington in which two senior american officers per Sian Gulf War commander h. Norman Schwarzkopf and Marine col. Fred Peck just Back from five months in Somalia offered compelling testimony for the ban. If the ban is lifted Clinton s military would be just like Many of the iraqi troops who sat in the deserts of Kuwait forced to execute orders they did t be Lieve in Schwarzkopf said. Peck offered a riveting reason for opposing the ban telling senators of news c had Learned just 48 hours earlier his eldest son is Gay. I spent 27 years of my life in the Mili tary and i know what it would be like for him if he went in. And it would be hell Peck said. Darden said Peck s words carried significant weight while his poise reminded him of another Marine it. Col. Oliver l. North. In assessing Schwarzkopf s Testi Mony he said Norman just decapitated anything except strident supporters of Gays in the  a senior Pentagon official who spoke on condition of anonymity said a special military panel is considering two alternatives that would modify Clinton s pledge to end the-60-year-Ola ban. One option embraces Nunn s Compromise while the other would allow open Gays to serve but would prohibit homosexual conduct. The Senate is moving toward the Nunn position Warner said Friday. Top officials May face prosecution Over missile contracts by the Baltimore Sun Washington the acting Secretary of the air Force and the head of the Pentagon s manage ment school could face criminal prosecution for allegedly devising an illegal bookkeeping scheme to cover $112 million in Cost overruns in the advanced cruise missile program Pentagon investigators say. Michael b. Donley the acting Secretary and air Force col. Claude Colton commander of the de sense systems management College at fort Belvoir va., knew that Money for the products of 250 mis Siles had run out in 1991. Reluctant to Stop production and ask Congress for More Money they shifted other funds into the program s overdrawn account without authorization and then replaced old con tracts with new ones to conceal what they had done according to a report by the Pentagon inspector Gen eral s office and key documents obtained by the Baltimore Sun. As a result taxpayers Are Likely to pay an extra $80 million for scrapping the old contracts and the air Force will end up with far fewer missiles than planned. The advanced cruise missile program is a study in the Pentagon s financial disarray that raises questions about the military s ability to live within its Bud get and handle taxpayers Money. Top air Force officials even ignored warnings from the Pentagon s comptroller consciously making decisions that broke the Law according to investigators and air Force memos. Their conduct shows a total disregard for the most Basic Laws governing the use of appropriations said sen. Charles it. Grassly an Iowa Republican who has urged the Pentagon to Send the Case to the attorney general. This kind of dishonest behaviour is unacceptable and must not be  both Donley and Bolton insist they have done nothing wrong. We stand by our original decisions Donley said in a written statement