By Jessica Bennett and Daniel Stone

As gay activists protest the selection of evangelical megapastor Rick Warren to give the inaugural invocation, they could have reason to cheer a future Obama announcement. Sources tell NEWSWEEK that the president-elect is considering the appointment of the first openly gay chief of a military branch.

Bill White, president of the Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum in New York, is being backed by congressional and former military leaders to be the next secretary of the Navy. Among White's vocal supporters are retired Gen. Hugh Shelton, a former chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and Rep. Jerrold Nadler, a New York Democrat whose district includes the newly renovated Intrepid museum which sits on an aircraft carrier in the Hudson River. Nadler says members of Obama's transition team have reached out to him about White. "They're clearly vetting him," he tells NEWSWEEK.

Another favorite caught in the Beltway chatter for the job is Juan Garcia, a former naval aviator who attended Harvard Law School with Obama and was chairman of his campaign in Texas.

Because the Navy secretary is a civilian job, White's appointment wouldn't directly conflict with the military ban on gays. But it would certainly bring new attention to the Pentagon's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy as Obama gets ready to take office. Getting rid of that law--under which more than 12,000 members of the military have been discharged--was an Obama campaign promise, though the president-elect has since acknowledged its repeal might take some time. If nominated, White, 42, will likely face questions about his take on that policy, implemented by President Clinton in 1993.

Though he's never served in the military, backers say White has extensive contacts in the armed forces through his role with the Intrepid Museum and the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund, a $100 million nonprofit set up to help military families and wounded vets. White also serves as a trustee of the Fisher House Foundation, which provides free housing at military and veterans hospitals for families who want to be near the recovery process. Reached by telephone, a spokeswoman for White said he would not be commenting, but has considered his work with the armed forces "truly the highest privilege."

"I certainly recommend him," Nadler says. "For the many years that I've known him, he's been an advocate for military personnel and their families, and for veterans." A source close to the talks says that incoming secretary of state Hillary Clinton has expressed support for White's nomination, although a spokesperson for Clinton (who remains a senator until she is confirmed next month) did not return calls for comment.

Supporters of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" have said that nominating White would send the wrong signal. "It's a matter of judgment, and I think that would be very poor judgment on the part of the commander in chief," Elaine Donnelly, president of the Center for Military Readiness, told The Washington Times, which first reported the White rumors. Meanwhile, in a statement released by the Human Rights Campaign, the nation's largest gay advocacy group, President Joe Solmonese said White's nomination would be a "concrete demostration" that the Obama administration sees "no place" for employment discrimination in government. "President-elect Obama has said both during his time in the Senate and on the campaign trail that overturning 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' was a priority for him, but he's also been straightforward and realistic that this is a measure that's going to require a great deal of strategy," Solmonese tells NEWSWEEK. "The consideration of this appointment certainly bodes well for keeping with Obama's commitment to address this issue."

The Obama transition team declined to comment.