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Published: 11:11 PM
07/25/2012
Oklahoma Republican Sen. James Inhofe told The
Daily Caller he believes President Barack Obama pressured the military into
granting an unprecedented exception to rules that prohibit participation in
political activities while in uniform.
The Defense Department
authorized a waiver to allow uniformed service members to march in last
weekend’s San Diego gay pride parade, overriding a Defense Department directive‘s
specific rules against uniformed service members’ participation in political
events.
“The Department of Defense isn’t allowing this
to go on, it’s the president,” Inhofe said in an interview with TheDC. “The
secretary of defense answers to the president, and the military answers to the
commander in chief. Clearly this is Barack Obama.”
In a letter to
Defense Secretary Leon Panetta, Inhofe asked for an explanation of the
decision.
“This apolitical stance has served our military
well and earned the respect of not just Americans but nations around the world
as being a professional organization, set aside from policies and agenda,”
Inhofe wrote.
The Pentagon officially said military members
could march in their dress blues and whites because the parade was garnering
“national attention.”
This is the first time in Inhofe’s 25 years in
Congress the Department of Defense has issued a waiver to override the
directive, he said.
Panetta’s decision was immediately criticized by
Republicans who suggested the order came from Obama, and not from the Defense
Department.
“It’s tied to the very liberal Obama agenda and
all signs are there,” Inhofe told TheDC. “I have no problem with people
marching in parades. It’s the uniform that makes the difference. You’re using
the uniform to promote an agenda.”
GOP congressional leaders worry the waiver will
stifle the military’s ability to keep politics and profession separate.
Big name sponsors of the parade included
At&T, Johnson & Johnson, HP and Aetna — all of which made substantial
contributions to Obama’s 2008 campaign. For the majority of the corporations,
according to Open Secrets, top donations were made to Democratic candidates as
opposed to Republicans.
Two of Obama’s biggest bundlers are
executives at Sony, another top sponsor of the parade. According to a
Washington Post analysis,
one-sixth of Obama’s campaign bundlers are openly gay.
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