Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician and attorney who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Barack Obama was the first African-American president of the United States. He previously served as a U.S. senator from Illinois from 2005 to 2008 and an Illinois state senator from 1997 to 2004.
Exclusive: Sen. Chris Coons Reflects on 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' Repeal
signed legislation to repeal the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy regarding LGB service members.The repeal didn’t go into effect until the following September, after the president and other officials certified that the armed forces were prepared to implement it consistent with standards of military effectiveness.
But LGB military members and their supporters still were celebrating in December 2010.U.S. Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware, a champion of repeal, has provided The Advocate an exclusive video (below) in which he reflects on the end of DADT and other progress toward LGBTQ+ equality since then — and what still needs to happen.
