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Military

Pentagon panels to examine adultery, gender issues

In this story: June 7, 1997
Web posted at: 8:37 p.m. EDT (0037 GMT)

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Secretary of Defense William Cohen announced Saturday that three panels will be set up to review military training, privacy issues and the "clarity" of its policy on adultery.

"Recent perceptions that our system is inconsistent damage the morale of our troops," Cohen said in a statement read at a briefing. "The actions I am taking today will assure that our training remains superb and that our rules are well understood at all levels of command."

The committees are to report back to Cohen with recommendations.

Voices from the street

Blue

"Adultery in the military...not something to be broadcast"

icon AIFF or WAV(192K / 14 sec. audio)

The armed forces have been hit by a spate of sex scandals, and the Pentagon has been criticized for a double standard that favors high-ranking officers, to the disadvantage of women and personnel of lower rank.

Among the more notable recent cases has been that of 1st Lt. Kelly Flinn, the Air Force's first female B-52 bomber pilot, who accepted a general discharge in lieu of a court-martial.

Flinn was accused of having an affair with a married civilian, lying about it to investigators and disobeying an order to end it. She was also accused of the more serious crime of "fraternization" for an affair with an enlisted man.

Her case was followed by the admission by Air Force Gen. Joseph Ralston, vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, that he had an adulterous affair with a CIA employee during the 1980s while he and his wife were separated.

The Pentagon called it a one-time affair that lasted no more than a year, but The Washington Post reported Saturday that it resumed when Ralston and his wife separated a second time. The couple has since divorced.

Ralston is the top candidate to be chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Just two years ago, Ralston demoted a 28-year veteran of the military for having an affair.

Ralston

Support for Ralston dwindles

Cohen said a panel of senior legal officers of all services would review the instructions given to military commanders about enforcing the laws against adultery, and clarify them. The Defense Department's general counsel, its top legal officer, will make recommendations to Cohen based on the panel's work.

A second panel, of civilians and military officials, will review disciplinary actions and advise Cohen on how to maintain discipline in the military while respecting individual privacy.

Yet another panel, of civilians, will be headed by former Republican Sen. Nancy Kassebaum Baker. It will study the issues involving men and women training together.

Voices from the street

"It sets a moral tone ..."
icon AIFF or WAV(192K / 13 sec. audio)
Glasses

Meanwhile, support for Ralston's nomination to be Joint Chiefs chairman appeared to be dwindling.

The Senate's top-ranking Democrat, Tom Daschle, D-South Dakota, said the military must enforce rules consistently.

"That has to be the guiding determination here. Is it being applied similarly?" Daschle said. "If it isn't, then I think the Pentagon needs to reevaluate whether this nomination ought to go forward."

'The timing ... is very awkward'

The White House pointedly avoided questions about whether Ralston should be promoted. Asked whether the Pentagon was applying a double standard, Vice President Al Gore was equivocal.

"We think that there should properly be a high standard, and the secretary of defense is in agreement with that," Gore said.

Sen. Joseph Lieberman, D-Connecticut, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, said the "burden of proof" was on the administration to show that Ralston deserved the job.

"The timing here, the coincidence of events, is very awkward and makes this nomination more difficult," said Lieberman, referring to the Flinn case.

Ex-wife supports nomination

Ralston became deputy to retiring Army Gen. John Shalikashvili at the Joint Chiefs before his superiors learned of his affair 13 years ago.

Ralston's affair came to light just a few days after the Air Force ended the career of Flinn.

Asked the difference between the two cases, McCurry said, "I'm not aware General Ralston had been charged with insubordination or lying."

Meanwhile, Ralston's ex-wife, Linda Ralston, told the Post she believes "General Ralston's record stands on its own, his leadership quality has always been of the utmost."

"All of us are human, and all of us make mistakes. We all err, and it's what we do with our lives after that that matters," she said.

 
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