Pentagon chief to military: Open all combat jobs to women

WASHINGTON (AP) — Defense Secretary Ash Carter today ordered the military to open all combat jobs to women, rebuffing requests by the Marine Corps to exclude women from certain front-line combat jobs.

Declaring that "we are a joint force," Carter said that while moving women into these jobs will present challenges, the military can no longer afford to exclude half of the population from grueling military jobs. He said that any man or woman who meets the standards should be able to serve, and he gave the armed services 30 days to submit plans to make the historic change.

Carter's order opens the final 10 percent of military positions to women, and allows them to serve in the military's most-demanding and difficult jobs, including as special operations forces, such as the Army Delta units and Navy SEALs.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman, Gen. Joseph Dunford, former Marine Corps commandant, had argued that the Marines should be allowed to keep women out of certain front-line combat jobs, citing studies showing that mixed-gender units aren't as capable as all-male units.

U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, released this statement: “Hundreds of thousands of women proudly and bravely serve in the United States military and our nation is grateful for their sacrifice. This decision recognizes the strength of all of our servicemembers and will expand leadership opportunities for the many qualified women of our armed forces.”