The general in charge of Fort Campbell, Ky., when PFC Barry Winchell was murdered in an antigay assault in 1999 has been promoted to three stars and command of the Fifth Army. The Senate confirmed the promotion of Robert T. Clark late in the day Nov. 18, 14 months after the nomination was first made.
Two Senators expressed opposition to the promotion from the floor of the Senate, while four others had comments expressing their objections entered into the record.
"It seems clear that if General Clark had exercised his responsibility to deal with the serious antigay harassment that was prevalent at Fort Campbell during his 17 months of command leading up to the murder of Private Winchell, the murder would probably not have occurred," said Sen. Ted Kennedy, D-Mass.
"Even more serious, however, was General Clark's performance at Fort Campbell in the days, weeks, and months following the murder ... . Instead of dealing directly with the problem of antigay harassment, General Clark chose to deny that any problem existed."
Kennedy compared that with the response of commanding General John Keane when racist soldiers murdered two African American civilians at Fort Bragg. "General Keane offered very strong public statements against racism, and he implemented sensitivity training on the base. General Clark did none of this."
He also discussed how the commander was held accountable for sexual harassment at the Air Force Academy. "Earlier this years, LTG John Dallager, the academy commander from 2002 to 2003, lost his third star and retired as a major general because the Secretary of the Air Force determined he 'did not exercise the degree of leadership in this situation that we expect of our commanders.'"
Sen. Mark Dayton, D-Minn., asked, "What kind of message [is promotion] sending" to gay and lesbian soldier in the military? "How are we ever going to change what is going on in these situations if no one is held accountable, if there is no consequence for not doing that a commander should do—what in some instances they are required by law to do?"
In his remarks, Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-New Jersey, recounted President Harry Truman's phrase, "The Buck Stops Here." "Apparently, the buck did not stop with General Clark. Instead of addressing the problem of homophobia at Fort Campbell, General Clark ignored it."
"General Clark even delayed meeting with Private Winchell's family—despite their repeated entreaties—for almost four years after his murder. I find this particularly inexplicable and inexcusable."
"Military promotions are usually very simple to consider, and are rarely troublesome or controversial," noted Sen. Daniel Akaka, D-Hawaii. This was not the case with Clark. As a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, Akaka said he spent considerable time reviewing the record and "I remain concerned about his lack of what I believe to be leadership qualities that are necessary for today's military leaders."
C. Dixon Osburn, executive director of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, which led the fight to deny Clark his promotion, was "disappointed" though not surprised by the confirmation. He took solace in the fact that "For the first time in history, Senators have closely scrutinized an officer's record on preventing antigay harassment."