Clark said on ABC’s “This Week” that with the military focused on war, “this is the ideal time to do this, because we’re talking about building teamwork around a common purpose.”

The former Democratic presidential hopeful said military leaders are ready to implement a repeal of the policy now, suggesting the prolonged political debate has become a distraction.

Clark said the message from military leaders is: “If you’re going to make the decision, make the decision, get it over with and take us out of the middle of the game and give us six months or so to do the training and education and get ready so the leadership can handle this,” he said.