Lawmaker tries to revive DADT for Okla. Guard - Army News | News from Afghanistan & Iraq - Army Times

Lawmaker tries to revive DADT for Okla. Guard

OKLAHOMA CITY — House Speaker Kris Steele on Monday derailed an Oklahoma lawmaker’s attempt to prevent gays from serving openly in the Oklahoma National Guard, drawing the ire of the bill’s author, who accused Steele of imposing “dictatorial rule” in the House.

Minutes before the bill was scheduled for a hearing in the House Veterans and Military Affairs Committee, the Shawnee Republican reassigned it to another committee whose chairman said he didn’t plan to hear it.

“Senior state military officials have expressed concerns to multiple House members that the proposed policy would jeopardize federal funding for the Oklahoma National Guard,” Steele spokesman John Estus said. “Speaker Steele believes those concerns are valid.

“No one wants to do anything to jeopardize the resources currently afforded to the outstanding men and women in the 45th (Infantry Division).”

Rep. Mike Reynolds said he introduced the bill because he believes the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy repealed last year was working effectively.

“It was a good deal until Barack Obama was elected president,” said Reynolds, R-Oklahoma City. “I don’t think anything about him being elected president made it a bad deal.”

The bill was fiercely opposed by gay rights groups, and Reynolds said he received more than 16,000 emails, mostly opposing the measure. He blasted Steele for reassigning the bill just before it was scheduled for a hearing.

“This is the type of dictatorial rule that’s going on in this House of Representatives, and it’s got to come to an end,” said Reynolds, who has been a frequent critic of the speaker.

The bill was sent to the House Rules Committee, where Rep. Gary Banz, a Army veteran, said he didn’t plan to hear it because he’s concerned it could threaten federal funding to equip and train the Oklahoma National Guard.

“There’s too much at stake to allow someone to be using the Oklahoma Air and Army National Guard to make a political statement,” said Banz, R-Midwest City.

Telephone messages left Monday with Oklahoma and U.S. National Guard officials were not immediately returned, but in a letter to Steele from Oklahoma’s Secretary of Military and Veterans Affairs, retired Maj. Gen. Rita Aragon echoed some of Banz’s concerns.

“Should Oklahoma opt not to accept and abide by the requirements of the parent service it could put the state’s National Guard’s federal status in jeopardy, which means the state of Oklahoma would have a state militia and be responsible for all equipping and training, pay and allowances for those military members,” Aragon wrote. “That would also mean that the members of the state militia would not be accepted as members of the U.S. Air Force or Army.”

Oklahoma has about 3,000 members of the 45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team serving in Afghanistan in what was the Guard’s largest deployment since the Korean War.

Ryan Kiesel, the director of the Oklahoma chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union, praised Steele’s decision effectively killing the bill.

“We certainly haven’t seen the end of bad legislation, but for today we’re glad that cooler heads prevailed,” said Kiesel, a former state lawmaker.