Court backs White House, suspends gays in military ruling

WASHINGTON - The Obama administration won a temporary stay against the moratorium on "don't ask, don't tell" Wednesday, granting the Pentagon the right to once again enforce the 17-year ban on gays in the military.

A three-judge panel on the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco issued the decision, giving itself more time to consider the Justice Department's appeal of an injunction issued last week by U.S. District Judge Virginia Phillips.

The stay was the latest volley in an issue ping-ponging its way through the courts. The Log Cabin Republicans, a gay-rights group that brought the suit challenging the constitutionality of "don't ask, don't tell," have until Monday to appeal the 9th Circuit Court's decision.

"While we are disappointed with the court's ruling granting a temporary administrative stay, we view the decision as nothing more than a minor setback," said Dan Woods, the group's attorney. "We didn't come this far to quit now."

This "is not a decision on the merits; it's an even more temporary decision," said Richard Socarides, a former gay-rights adviser to President Bill Clinton who is tracking the issue closely.

"For the reasons stated in the government's submission, we believe a stay is appropriate," Pentagon spokeswoman Cynthia Smith said. The Defense Department will be issuing additional guidance regarding the decision, she said.

The military is back to where it was before Phillips caught it by surprise with her injunction. Since then, the Pentagon has instructed military recruiters to accept openly gay and lesbian applicants.

As for any gay or lesbian people who enlisted with the military this week, "They may be told they cannot join" if the Pentagon decides to enforce the law, said Aubrey Sarvis, executive director of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network.