How to End "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"

Professor Yin had the opportunity to speak with General Wesley Clark during his visit to the University of Iowa, and has posted his thoughts. I'm still reserving judgment (and may do so throughout the primary season), but there were a couple things Clark said which I found particularly interesting:

On gays in the military, he believed at the time that the "Don't ask, don't tell" policy was okay, but he also pointed out that back in the days of the draft, being gay would not get you excused. He now believes that the policy should be reevaluated because it does not seem to be working well. He favors the British policy, which is "Don't ask, don't misbehave."

That seems pretty sensible, and probably a realistic step in the right direction. What I wonder is whether Clark (or any other candidate who opposes the current policy) will try to go through Congress (a la "Don't Ask, Don't Tell") or attempt to act by executive order (a la Truman's desegregation order). The former seems like a dead end considering the current Republican control.

For difficulties inherent in the latter path, one need look no further than the institutional resistance exhibited by the military in the face of Truman's order. A hostile Congress could prevent this path as well, as I think the President's executive powers are strongly handicapped so long as "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" is statutory law.