US military to end gay ban today

WASHINGTON: The Pentagon has said that the military is adequately prepared for the official lifting of the legal ban on gays serving openly on Tuesday. Press secretary George Little said on Monday that the ban will end at one minute after midnight. At that time, revised defense department regulations will take effect, to reflect the new law that will allow gays to serve openly.
President Barack Obama signed the law last December, and in July he certified that lifting the ban will not diminish the military's ability to fight. Little said, defence secretary Leon Panetta would discuss the matter at a Pentagon news conference on Tuesday. The Pentagon otherwise was taking a lowkey approach to the historic day. Gay rights groups, however, were preparing a series of celebrations across the nation.
During the long, arduous campaign to repeal "don't ask, don't tell", activists and advocacy groups tended to downplay issues related to post-repeal benefits for civilian partners. "It's not something we've been pushing very hard for yet, but it's obviously going to be the next front in the ongoing battle for equality," said Alex Nicholson, executive director of Servicemembers United.