GI Jane

National Review, August 26, 1991

BACK WHEN the Soviets first invaded Afghanistan, comedian Bill Murray put forth his solution on Saturday Night Live: Send over an all-female contingent. If we win, great. If we lose, we say, "Big deal, you beat up a bunch of girls."

With its overwhelming 69 to 30 vote to lift combat restrictions on women fighter pilots, the U.S. Senate seems to have adopted the Murray Defense Plan. Removing combat restrictions on women invites a host of practical questions. But the salient point about the Senate vote is that feminists don't even want these questions asked, much less answered: no debate, no presidential commission (which is what the Armed Services Committee wanted), no actual study of the performance of woman soldiers during Desert Storm.

Making fighter pilots--mostly white officers--the test case was a nice touch. Enlisted women by and large want the combat restrictions retained, and had the move been made on the issue of ground combat there would have been an uproar in the ranks. As it was, the boys even winked at rules prohibiting lobbying in uniform when female officers made their push on the Hill. It helped that Defense Secretary Dick Cheney took a hike on the issue, leaving Congress without any guidance.

Whatever the Senate vote, there is little evidence to suggest that Americans are eager to send their daughters into combat; nor did the idea of separating young mothers from their babies go down well. In the wake of Desert Storm the U.S. military was highly praised for being the most perfectly integrated institution in the nation. We joined in that praise, because integration was achieved on merit. Having stood up to Saddam Hussein, the president should not truckle to Pat Schroeder.