Judge asked to stay ruling on US military ban on homosexuals

The Obama administration on Thursday asked a judge to allow the Pentagon to keep its ban against openly gay men and women in the military while it appeals her decision that ruled the "don't ask, don't tell" policy was unconstitutional.

President Barack Obama, defense secretary Robert Gates and military leaders have backed ending the policy, but have urged that it be done by the US Congress and military so that there is no disruption to military operations, morale or recruiting.

At a town hall meeting with young voters, a woman pressed Obama on why he wasn't ending the policy immediately.

"This is not a situation where with a stroke of a pen I can end the policy," he said and noted that he cannot ignore laws on the books. "This policy will end and it will end on my watch."

The policy was introduced in 1993 by president Bill Clinton and enacted into law, overturning a previous policy of excluding gay men and women altogether based on a premise that homosexuality was incompatible with the military.

Judge Virginia Phillips in California on Tuesday said the policy violated the US Constitution and ordered the military to stop enforcing it and drop pending investigations or discharges.

That sent the White House, Justice Department and Pentagon scrambling to seek the stay and appeal the ruling while it works on a parallel track to repeal the policy through Congress and set up new policies to allow openly gay people to serve.

The justice department filed the stay request and simultaneously appealed her ruling to the US court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. The government also asked for a temporary stay while Phillips considers the request and that she rules on the petitions by midday on Monday.

If she refuses, the administration said it would make the same request to the appeals court.