A few months after his first defeat on the issue, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., again failed today to gather the 60 votes needed to bring up legislation that would repeal the federal law on homosexuality in the military.
The Defense Authorization bill, which Congress traditionally passes before a lame-duck session ends, currently contains a repeal of “don’t ask, don’t tell” — as well as an amendment that would allow abortions on military bases. The procedural vote was 57-40 — not enough to bring the legislation to a floor vote. Sens. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Blanche Lincoln, D-Ark., did not vote.
“The U.S. Senate did not allow itself to be bullied into passing legislation that would be harmful to our military,” said Elaine Donnelly, founder and president of the Center for Military Readiness. “This was not just a procedural vote, this was a substantive vote. It’s time for President Obama and his administration to let this issue go.”
Ashley Horne, federal policy analyst at CitizenLink, said family advocates are to thank for the historic vote in the Senate.
“Today’s vote was an absolute victory for family values,” she said, “and it was due in large part to constituents all across the country who were calling in, saying, ‘We don’t want this to happen.’ ”
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See how your senators voted. A “yea” vote was a vote FOR repealing “don’t ask, don’t tell.”
Blog: Ask, Then Don’t Listen: A Look at the Pentagon Report on Open Homosexuality in the Military
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