A2
Politics & The Nation
Drugmaker accused of hiding recall from public .................................A3 Small donors come up big for GOP candidates.....................................A4 Congress, Defense Secretary wrangle over F-35 engine.......................A4 Senate approves war funding, disaster relief .......................................A4 Ethics office asks for investigation of lobby firm’s clients....................A5 Halt in offshore drilling cuts funds for Virginia’s transportation projects ....................................................A9
GULF COAST OIL SPILL
Costly drilling effort might have rushed BP and Transocean on safety measures.......................................................A8 Millions of gallons of oil are leaking into the gulf ................................A9 Captain testifies at oil-spill inquiry......................................................A10
The World
2 Arab Israeli activists accused of aiding Hezbollah ...........................A11 Rhetoric heated in water dispute between India, Pakistan ...............A14 Young South Koreans worry about rising tensions with North Korea .........................................................A16 U.S., Brazilian officials at odds over letter on Iranian uranium.........A17
Economy & Business
Steven Pearlstein
For all its blunders, BP didn’t cut and run.......................................A18 Stocks rise on China’s euro promise.....................................................A18 U.S., Germany divided over financial regulation ...............................A20 SEC settles charges with firm over insider trading ............................A20 Lehman Brothers estate sues J.P. Morgan Chase ...............................A21
CORRECTIONS
was printed in advance, includes an incorrect closing date for “So- phisticated Ladies” at the Lincoln Theatre. The show has been ex- tended through June 27.
COURTESY OF THE ARTISTS
“Endurance: Billy.”
A photo caption with a May 16 Arts & Style article about artists Bradley McCallum and Jacque- line Tarry incorrectly said that “Endurance: Billy” was among the works in which the artists photograph themselves. The pho- tograph, which is reprinted here, is of a homeless youth who is also featured in a video made by the artists.
A Mini Reviews listing in to- day’s Weekend section, which
·· E-mail
corrections@washpost.com.
An A-section article in some May 27 editions, about Justice Antonin Scalia’s remarks the pre- vious evening defending Su- preme Court nominee Elena Ka- gan’s lack of judicial experience, incorrectly said that his speech was delivered at Catholic Univer- sity’s Columbus School of Law. Scalia delivered the annual Judge Thomas A. Flannery Lecture in the Ceremonial Courtroom at the E. Barrett Prettyman U.S. Court- house. The article also incorrectly indicated that the lecture is affili- ated with the law school. The late Flannery was a 1940 graduate of the school, but the lecture series was created by his colleagues, friends and family members, not the school.
A May 25 Local Living article about how claims on food pack- aging can be deceptive misstated the amount of sugar in a three- quarter-cup serving of Kellogg’s Froot Loops. A serving of that size contains nine grams of sugar, not 26 grams.
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POOL PHOTO VIA GETTY IMAGES
President Obama speaks on Memorial Day last year at Arlington National Cemetery. This year he’ll be at a national cemetery in Illinois.
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President’s Memorial Day plans irk some veterans
by Anne E. Kornblut and Ed O’Keefe
President Obama is skipping
the traditional Memorial Day visit to Arlington National Cemetery, a move that has dismayed some vet- erans — and comes at a sensitive moment in the administration’s relationship with the military. Instead of speaking at Arling- ton, as he did last year and as most presidents have done, Oba- ma will appear at the Abraham Lincoln National Cemetery out- side Chicago, the White House said. Vice President Biden will take his place at Arlington, the most prestigious military cem- etery in the country and home to
Section 60, a large burial ground for soldiers killed in Iraq and Af- ghanistan. Paul Rieckhoff, the founder and
executive director of the group Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America, expressed disappoint- ment at the White House move. “Arlington is hallowed ground, and the center of our nation’s at- tention on Memorial Day,” Rieck- hoff said. “Unfortunately, Presi- dent Obama and his family will not be there with us.” Critics — mainly conservatives
— have argued that attendance is more important with two wars ongoing. “Obama may talk about the government in the first per- son, but the men and women ly- ing at Arlington know differently,” commentator Eric Erickson wrote on the conservative site Red-
state.com. “Of course, Obama really doesn’t like the military, does he.” Fox News blared the headlines: “Trampling on Tradi- tion?” and “Offensive to Soldiers?” But other veterans say they’re not disturbed by Obama’s deci- sion. “We don’t really see the big deal, so long as he’s taking the time to honor our fallen war he- roes throughout Memorial Day weekend,” said Ryan Gallucci, spokesman for AMVETS. “ . . . Ar- lington is certainly not the only place our fallen heroes are buried, so why not pay your respects to veterans around the country?” Steve Muro, the Department of
Veterans Affairs acting undersec- retary responsible for 131 national cemeteries, said Obama’s decision to visit a cemetery named for Lin- coln is appropriate, since the 16th
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president established the coun- try’s first 14 national cemeteries. “I think the president is trying to show that there is more than one national cemetery,” Muro said.
Obama is not the first president to miss the Arlington ceremony. Ronald Reagan spoke at West Point one year, and went to his California ranch another year. George H.W. Bush, a war veteran, did not go at all. Bill Clinton, who did not serve in Vietnam and had a rocky time with the military, went to Arlington all eight years, and George W. Bush, who also avoided combat service in Viet- nam, attended from 2003 onward. Obama, who opposed the Iraq
invasion and has overseen a draw- down there but is adding 30,000 troops in Afghanistan, has had a mixed relationship with the mili- tary. His current support for ending
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“don’t ask, don’t tell” is not uni- versally supported by the rank and file, but comes with backing from some top brass. His most senior firing to date
was retired Adm. Dennis C. Blair, who was pushed out as director of national intelligence last week, one of a handful of military mem- bers who have struggled in the highest ranks.
kornbluta@washpost.com
ed.okeefe@washingtonpost.com
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by Perry Bacon Jr. and Ed O’Keefe
The House of Representatives voted Thursday night to repeal “don’t ask, don’t tell,” the contro- versial policy barring openly gay men and lesbians from serving in the military. The measure — an amendment
to a defense policy bill — passed 234 to 194, delivering a major vic- tory to gay rights activists who have opposed the Pentagon pol- icy since it was enacted in 1993. It also marks the most aggressive step by Democrats in implement- ing President Obama’s campaign pledge to end the policy. The legislation includes a pro- vision ensuring that no change would take effect until the Penta- gon completes a study about its impact on troops, due to Con- gress Dec. 1. It also requires that the study determine that a policy change would not affect the mili- tary’s ability to fight wars or re- cruit soldiers. Democrats pushed ahead on the issue over the objections of some key military leaders, who said Congress should have waited to vote until the study is com- plete.
S
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FRIDAY, MAY 28, 2010
Senate committee votes to end ‘don’t ask’
House expected to
follow suit soon; change would hinge on study
Twenty-six Democrats voted against the amendment, while five Republicans voted yes. Earlier Thursday, the Senate Armed Services Committee also voted to change the policy, on a 16 to 12 vote. Sen. James Webb (D- Va.) joined 11 Republicans in op- posing the change, while Sen. Su- san Collins (R-Maine) voted with the Democrats. The full Senate is likely to consider the issue next month. The votes came after fierce de-
bates on both sides of the Capitol. “We’re saying, ‘We’re shoving this down your throat, we don’t care,’ ” said Rep. Louis Gohmert (R-Tex.), arguing that Congress should have waited to hear from the military before taking action. He added, “The military is not a social experiment.” But Rep. Barney Frank (D-
Mass.), one of the few openly gay members of Congress, blasted de- fenders of “don’t ask, don’t tell” and noted that other countries don’t have such restrictions in their armed forces. “Those who tell me that the presence of gay and lesbian mem- bers of the military undermine the effectiveness of a fighting force and undermine unit cohe- sion must have never heard of Is- rael,” he said. “So the notion that you must deny American gay and lesbian citizens their right has no basis in reality.” The Senate committee debated the issue for more than an hour,
in a closed-door session that members described as heated and vigorous. (Armed Services Committee hearings are often closed, so that the committee can discuss confidential defense mat- ters, and members did not decide to open the hearing for the “don’t ask” debate.) Supporters of the change de- scribed it as an historic achieve- ment. “This is the end of a shameful ban on open service by lesbian and gay troops that has weak- ened our national security,” said Joe Solmonese, the president of the gay rights group Human Rights Campaign. The legislation represents a compromise between the admin- istration and gay rights groups, who have long complained that the Pentagon’s policy effectively allows one of America’s most powerful institutions to discrim- inate. More than 13,000 people in the Armed Forces left the mili- tary because “don’t ask, don’t tell” since 1993, including more than 400 last year. Defense Secretary Robert M.
Gates and Navy Adm. Mike Mul- len, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, have endorsed the policy change while emphasizing that the Pentagon first needs to exam- ine its impact on the troops. Mul- len has said he supports repeal, calling it “the right thing to do” in testimony before Congress in February.
But the heads of the Army,
Navy, Air Force and Marines have said Congress should wait for the completion of the Pentagon study.
“Repealing the law before the
completion of the review will be seen by the men and women of the Army as a reversal of our commitment to hear their views before moving forward,” Gen. George W. Casey Jr., the Army’s chief of staff, wrote in a letter. The push from Democrats comes as public opinion has changed dramatically on the is- sue. In 1993, 44 percent of Amer- icans supported allowing people who are openly gay to serve in the military. Today, 75 percent sup- port that idea, according to a re- cent Washington Post poll. Any change is unlikely to hap-
pen before next year. Pentagon of- ficials have said it could take sev- eral months after completing the study until they are prepared to fully integrate gays into the armed forces as they consider such issues as whether gay and heterosexual troops could be re- quired to share housing and whether the military would be re- quired to extend benefits to same-sex partners.
baconp@washpost.com ed.okeefe@wpost.com
Staff writer Craig Whitlock, research editor Alice Crites and polling analyst Jennifer Agiesta contributed to this report.
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