Colin Powell On Don't Ask, Don't Tell: "We Should Definitely Re-Evaluate It" (VIDEO)

Colin Powell appeared on Fareed Zakaria's CNN how, the "Global Public Square." During a wide-ranging interview, Zakaria brought up the policy of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" towards gays in the military. Zakaria wondered if fifteen years after that policy had been implemented it was time to re-evaluate it. Powell said yes, "we definitely should re-evaluate it."

[WATCH]

Comments

[PKSSK]

09:55 PM on 12/14/2008

This was a great interview! Powell should be appointed to a position in Obama's cabinet. I think he would make a superb Director of the CIA. He has learned from on hand experience the difference between real intelligie­nce and fake. He would never let it happen again and Obama could trust him.

[AJBF]

08:15 PM on 12/14/2008

This is most dissapoint­ing. As enlightene­d as Powel has become in other areas, as far as gay civil rights go he is blind. This is not an issue we should putsy foot around anymore. Ignorance and its offspring bigotry and hatred have to be called out loud and clear. You can't put the rights of a minority in the hands of the majority. That's why we have courts. Would Powel have such a relaxed, laissez-fa­ire attitude if we were talking racial segregatio­n in the military?

[thankulord13]

09:12 PM on 12/14/2008

How come those in support of Gay and Lesbian rights are always trying to force there views and ways done the throats of the rest of us. Maybe just like the Civil Right's movement and desegregat­ion it will take time to change peoples views, but forcing it will only cause others to dig their feet in deeper into what they believe and all that does is make both sides not want to listen.

[carsntrucks]

11:35 PM on 12/14/2008

Thank you.

[deadelephant2]

01:22 AM on 12/16/2008

Because there has been exactly NO movement for civil rights change in this country of ANY kind without activism behind it, that's why.

[edwarvir]

07:58 PM on 12/14/2008

This is a wonderful and great man. I saw
this interview today and he was refreshing­ly honest.,
and for a Republican that is saying a lot.

[Diplomacy]

07:42 PM on 12/14/2008

Colin Powell should revisit the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy of the US military seeing as it was his policy.

NO. The Obama Administra­tion isn't that naive. There's more important items on the Agenda. This is exactly the political debate that got the Clinton Administra­tion into a mess early on.

Yes, the rights of individual­s is important, and sexual orientatio­n is solely the privacy of the individual­. But, these days there are too many important 'fish' to fry!

[Eric8869]

08:04 PM on 12/14/2008

Clinton made a campaign promise about overturnin­g the ban - they betrayed the gay community with Don't Ask Don't Tell.

It was only a mess because he was "king compromise­" - if he had just done the exectutive order then he would have been cheered by gay advocates and attacked by the right.

Instead he compromise­d and made both sides angry. It set the stage for all the "scandals" to come.

Hopefully Obama learns from Clinton's mistakes. If you're wishy washy both sides hate you.

[BloodyJesus]

07:41 PM on 12/14/2008

What a joke! At this point American military welcomes gang members and ex-cons, so as a gay person I should be grateful? Christ, even the Israeli army has allowed gays to serve for years already, as does virtually every other Western nation EXCEPT the good old "freedom" loving USA.
So many good solders have been thrown out, so many lives ruined, so much money and training wasted because of the bigotry of the US military. Funny how despite the fact that American women in the military have suffered enormous sexual abuse at the hands of straight servicemen­, people like Powell were obsessed with being hit on by a gay guy in the showers or battlefiel­d... like that's gonna happen?!
Most gay soldiers served their country in silence about their orientatio­n and were only discovered because of military witchhunts determined to find them.
This country is a sorry excuse for a democracy sometimes.

[Eric8869]

08:04 PM on 12/14/2008

No to mention the firing of Military Translator­s because they were gay. Yes people who decode messages from the enemies and SAVE LIVES were let go because of who they love. Idiotic.

[uncle]

10:43 PM on 12/14/2008

"love"??

Oh you are talking about an-l s-x??

[TurgidCaterwauling]

07:32 PM on 12/14/2008

Equally as important, Powell asked, "Do we (the republican party) want Sarah Palin and Rush Limbaugh to be our voice?" It is time more republican­s started sending the same message.

[Babysnake]

07:26 PM on 12/14/2008

I'd give him more credit if he made loud apologies for past mistakes.

I've never seen any courage come from him.

[DesertZ]

08:04 PM on 12/14/2008

I agree. Colin Powell NEVER has had any spine! He's pathetic!

[carsntrucks]

07:03 PM on 12/14/2008

I don't think it's necessary to overturn it. At the same time, I think those in the military probably just don't enforce it as much instead of being like, "oh, we need to overturn this NOW!" They understand times have changed. They don't need civilians to tell them that. They also know that the military isn't quite the same as American public law, there's more at stake, and there's a different kettle of fish involved with being different (that includes not just being gay).

[Karl Jonas]

07:40 PM on 12/14/2008

Ah but the military DOES enforce it! they have thrown thousands of lesbians and gays out of the military for doing nothing other than being themselves­. No violations of the military code of justice... nothing. They even threw out the gay Arabic and Farsi translator­s when we desperatel­y needed them. DADT has to go.

[carsntrucks]

11:33 PM on 12/14/2008

Violating DADT is against the military code, and last I checked, the military is about conformity anyway. You're supposed to work as a team, not stand out.

[Subhunter]

06:25 PM on 12/14/2008

Come one, come all. Step right up folks, don't be shy. Be the first on your block to say that you've actually seen it. Right behind the curtain you'll watch as the one and only world famous Colin Powell, the man that convinced the UN of Saddam's WMD stockpile, the man that put one over on the entire US, the ex Chairman of the JCS, ex Secretary of State and loyal republican boot licker par excellence who never failed to bend over and take one for the team perform a stunt so shocking, so daring, so politicall­y death defying that you'll be left stunned in amazement. Watch the general actually attempt to reinvent himself in full view, right before your very eyes. Is it a trick? Is it done with smoke and mirrors? Is it something only Karl Rove could do or.....is it real? Only you can decide, real or Illusion. Don't forget to bring the little woman, she'll want to see it too and bring kiddies too, they'll have something to tell their grandkids about rest assyred. Can Colin really do it? Step right up.....

[Eric8869]

06:24 PM on 12/14/2008

hmmmm during the initial gays in the military discussion under Clinton he used some of the SAME ARGUMENTS against gay people serving that they used againt integratin­g black people. (Unit Cohesion etc)

NOW he wants to re-evaulat­e it? Well it's the right thing to do BUT why now???

Is it because you now realize that your legacy will be discrimina­tion against gay people AND lying to the United Nations on the reasons we went to war????

Well Sorry Powell - your legacy are those things. You should have thought about that before you made those decisions.

[RODERICK098]

06:21 PM on 12/14/2008

Not to mention how national security could have been weakened in the fight against terrorism. Many much needed Arabic translator­s for the armed forces were dismissed due to being gay. How many lives were lost to that Rethug bigoted policy.

[craneman]

07:08 PM on 12/14/2008

Excellent point !!!

[JohnJames]

07:45 PM on 12/14/2008

I brought this up in my own posting (which may or may not go through). Being gay myself, I don't like all the stereotype­s but the fact is that gay men do seem to have a natural facility for foreign languages. I've never known a gay man who importuned a straight man who wasn't interested or who wasn't discreet in general in predominan­tly heterosexu­al environmen­ts. It's hard to imagine anyone would actually prefer being killed due to an environmen­t where no communicat­ion was possible with the locals rather than knowing, maybe, some other guy thinks you're hot but keeps it to himself.

[tompoe]

05:59 PM on 12/14/2008

Powell is a war criminal. Why is he being interviewe­d, without that disclaimer­?

[KeysDan]

05:46 PM on 12/14/2008

Colin Powell is working fast and hard to get himself re-evaluat­ed. It seems like Powell is playing his career-tes­ted role of opportunis­m. If My Lai needs to be covered up, he is ready to assist. If Cap Weinberger needs to be bailed out of his Iran/Contr­a diary perjury, he was ready to testify. If Senator Ted Stevens needs a character witness, Powell is there to testify that Stevens was a great "appropria­tor" (no pun intended). If asked to sell the Iraq war, get him a vial of white powder, some "drawings" of dangerous weapons and a ride to the UN. With Don't Ask Don't Tell, Powell went the extra mile giving a speech to cadets at the Naval Academy advising the graduates to resist the executive orderpropo­sed by President Clinton--o­n moral grounds. His present efforts seem designed to avoid fleeing from every European hotel through the kitchen exits to avoid aggressive judicial pursuits.

[ThePeacemakers]

05:11 PM on 12/14/2008

Where was this Colin Powell during two Bush Administra­tions?

Now he's endorsing the Democrat for President.
Denouncing the appointmen­t of any more conservati­ve judges to the Supreme Court.
Ready to re-evaluat­e "don't ask, don't tell".

Next thing you know he'll be saying we should nationaliz­e the oil companies.­..
And end all wars.

[Balancement]

05:06 PM on 12/14/2008

You would think that Powell would have learned long before now what the word "equal" means.