New Boy Scouts president: Gay scout leaders acceptable
Former Defense Secretary Robert Gates IRVING, TX , May 27, 2014- Former Defense Secretary Robert Gates, who led the military to end Don't Ask, Don't Tell, says that he would have allowed homosexual leaders for Boy Scouts of America . Gates, who was elected to head the Boy Scouts of America ( BSA ) for a two-year term last week, said that he "would have supported having gay Scoutmasters , but at the same time, I fully accept the decision that was democratically arrived at by 1,500 volunteers from across the entire country." A year ago, BSA allowed openly homosexual scouts for the first time. The policy reads that "No youth may be denied membership in the Boy Scouts of America on the basis of sexual orientation or preference alone.” The policy took effect on January 1, 2014. Gates, who said he "was prepared to go further than the decision that was made," declared in a public statement last week that he did not intend to reignite t