Larry Whitt (left) protests 'dont ask, don't tell' in Florida on Monday. | AP Photo Global ban ordered on 'don't ask'

A federal judge has ordered a worldwide halt to enforcement of the Defense Department’s "don't ask, don't tell" policy regarding gays in the military.

U.S. District Court Judge Virginia Phillips issued the injunction Tuesday after finding last month that the policy – made law by Congress in 1993 – violates the Constitutional rights of service members. She acted on a lawsuit brought by the Log Cabin Republicans, a political organization of gay conservatives.


The Justice Department had urged Phillips, who sits in Riverside, Calif., to limit any relief to members of the Log Cabin group or to the named plaintiffs. Her order, however, applies to all U.S. military operations around the globe.

The White House had no immediate reaction to the order, which took effect when it was issued. The Defense Department had no immediate word on how it will comply with the judge's order.

"We have just learned of this ruling. We are now studying it and we will be in consultation with the Department of Justice," Pentagon spokeswoman Cynthia Smith said.

If the Justice Department continues its present policy of defending the "don't ask" statute despite President Barack Obama's call for its repeal, an appeal is likely – a move that would likely anger gay rights activists who have pressed for an end to the policy. A confrontation with a strongly Democratic constituency a few weeks before crucial midterm elections cannot be welcome news for the White House.

White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs would not comment specifically on the injunction Tuesday, but said Obama is committed to dismantling the DADT policy. "The president will continue to work as hard as he can to change the law that he believes is fundamentally unfair," Gibbs said.

At the same time, advocates cheered the judge’s action – and her decision to reject the government’s call for a more limited order.

“A world-wide injunction was the only reasonable solution,” said Christian Berle, acting executive director of Log Cabin Republicans. “This decision is….a victory for all who support a strong national defense. No longer will our military be compelled to discharge service members with valuable skills and experience because of an archaic policy mandating irrational discrimination.”

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat who represents San Francisco, also hailed the decision, via Twitter. “Today's order barring enforcement of DADT is welcome & further affirmation constitutional rights are being denied,” she wrote.

At least one gay rights group suggested a higher court will likely put Phillips’s ruling on ice.

“This order from Judge Phillips is another historic and courageous step in the right direction, a step that Congress has been noticeably slow in taking," said Alexander Nicholson, executive director of the advocacy group Servicemembers United and a plaintiff in the case. "While this is certainly news to be celebrated, we would also advise caution in advance of a potential stay from the Ninth Circuit. If the appellate court wishes to put itself on the right side of history, however, it will allow this sound and long-overdue decision to remain in effect."

The White House has said the Justice Department is defending the law because of a long-standing executive branch policy defending Congressional enactments – even if the current administration may disagree. However, gay activists have pointed to instances where the Justice Department has declined to defend laws that might not pass constitutional muster.

On the other side of the debate, conservative Republicans in Congress have accused the White House of mounting a less-than-vigorous defense of the “don’t ask” policy. The GOP is expected to loudly object if the administration decides not to block Phillips’s order and overturn her ruling that “don’t ask” violates the First Amendment and due process rights of military members.

Also Tuesday, the administration filed notice it will appeal a federal judge's ruling holding unconstitutional a portion of the federal Defense of Marriage Act, which bars health and retirement benefits for the same-sex spouses of federal employees.

In July, U.S. District Court Judge Joseph Tauro ruled that the 1996 law violates the rights of states to set their own marriage policies and the rights of same-sex couples married in the states that permit such marriages. Obama has called for repealing DOMA, but the Justice Department defended the law in the trial court.

Tauro ruled last July on a pair of suits, one brought by married same-sex couples and another by the Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley. Facing a deadline in the state's case on Tuesday, the Justice Department filed a notice of appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit.

The bare-bones notice, is fairly typical of such filings. Justice spokeswoman Tracy Schmaler reiterated the administration’s position: it disagrees with the law but is defending it as a matter of long-standing policy.

"The Justice Department is defending the statute, as it traditionally does when acts of Congress are challenged,” she said. "As a policy matter, the President has made clear that he believes DOMA is discriminatory and should be repealed. The Department of Justice has a longstanding practice of defending federal statutes when they are challenged in court, including by appealing adverse decisions of lower courts."

There's been no notice of appeal in the case involving individual plaintiffs, brought by Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders. The deadline for a government appeal in that suit is next week.

Gordon Lubold contributed to this report.