(AFP) By CHRISTINE SIMMONS President Barack Obama restated his campaign pledge to
allow homosexual men and women to serve openly in the military, but left many
in his audience of gay activists wondering when he would make good on the
promise. "I will end 'don't ask-don't tell,'" Obama
said Saturday night to a standing ovation from the crowd of about 3,000 at the
annual dinner of the Human Rights Campaign, a gay civil rights advocacy group. He
offered no timetable or specifics and he acknowledged some may be growing
impatient. "I appreciate that many of you don't believe
progress has come fast enough," Obama said. "Do not doubt the
direction we are heading and the destination we will reach." Some advocates said they already have heard Obama's
promises and now they want a timeline. Cleve Jones, a pioneer activist and
creator of the AIDS Memorial Quilt, said Obama delivered a brilliant speech,
but added "it lacked the answer to our most pressing question, which is
when." "He repeated his promises that he's made to us
before, but he did not indicate when he would accomplish these goals and we've
been waiting for a while now," said Jones, national co-chair of a major
gay-rights rally scheduled for Sunday on the National Mall. Aubrey Sarvis, executive director of the
Servicemembers Legal Defense Network said he was encouraged to hear Obama's
pledge but added "an opportunity was missed tonight." He said his
group "was disappointed the president did not lay out a timeline and
specifics for repeal." Obama also called on Congress to repeal the Defense Of
Marriage Act, which limits how state, local and federal bodies can recognize
partnerships and determine benefits. He also called for a law to extend
benefits to domestic partners. He expressed strong support for the HRC agenda of
ending discrimination against gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgender people
but stopped short of laying out a detailed plan for how to get there. "My expectation is that when you look back on
these years you will look back and see a time when we put a stop against
discrimination ... whether in the office or the battlefield," Obama said. Obama's political energies are focused on many issues,
including managing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the economic crisis and his
ambitious plan to reform the health care system. The HRC holds out hope of seeing more action. "We have never had a stronger ally in the White
House. Never," Joe Solmonese, the group's president, said at the dinner
before the president spoke.