Pentagon Opens Combat Jobs to Women, 'No Exceptions'

The US Defense Department may be making history by opening all combat roles to women, but advocates say that's just recognizing what's been true for a long time.

US Army Spc. Rebecca Buck

Photo: Tech. Sgt. William Greer/USAF

At the Pentagon yesterday, Defense Secretary Ash Carter told reporters that as long as they qualify and meet specific standards, women will be doing "everything else that was previously open only to men." Anne Coughlin is a professor at the University of Virginia Law School. Her research led to the filing of the first lawsuit that challenged the exclusion of women from ground combat.