Senate votes to end filibuster of 'don’t ask, don’t tell' repeal, clears way for passage

[jefferson_dem]

Source: AP

WASHINGTON— The Senate has voted to move ahead on legislation that would overturn the military's 17-year-old ban on openly gay troops — a policy known as "don't ask, don't tell." The 63-33 vote all but guarantees the legislation will pass the Senate and reach President Barack Obama by year's end. Republicans had blocked previous votes on the bill on procedural grounds. But with a major tax bill finished and a Pentagon study released in favor of repealing the ban, several Republicans joined Democrats in supporting the bill. Final passage could come as early as Saturday afternoon.

In earlier developments, advocates vowed to leave nothing to chance and stepped up lobbying efforts in the hours before the vote, including a silent protest in the visitor seats overlooking the Senate floor.

"We simply cannot let the clock run out and lose this historic opportunity," said Aubrey Sarvis, executive director of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network,
whose supporters vowed to sit in the Senate gallery until the law was repealed.

Repeal would mean that for the first time in U.S. history, gays would be openly accepted by the military and could acknowledge their sexual orientation without fear of being kicked out. More than 13,500 service members have been dismissed under the 1993 "don't ask, don't tell" law requiring uniformed gays to hide their sexual identity.

Read more: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40715888/ns/politics-capitol_hill/

[Ruby the Liberal]

1. Still voting on this tomorrow?

[Johnny2X2X]

4. Later Today probably

It's all but a done deal. This is a long time coming and the fulfillment of a Campaign promise for Obama. it's also a huge Political victory for Obama and the Democrats. 63-33 Should turn to 70-60 when it's all said and done as some Senators wont want to vote on the wrong side of history.

Say what you want, but it's been a huge week for Obama.

[TheWraith]

5. I doubt it'll be 70-30, I don't see any other Republicans flipping on this.

If anything we might lose the ones we got, by virtue of them being afraid of the Tea Party. No matter, it passes now either way.

[jefferson_dem]

7. Right. Vote on final passage scheduled for around 3:00 (ET) today.

[nyy1998]

31. Agreed on Obama'a big week, not so much on the 70 votes.

[polmaven]

52. LOL!

We picked up an additional 30 Senators???/


As I was keying...the final vote was announced!!! 65 Yes - 31 Nay!!!


WoooHooo!!!!:bounce:

[tomm2thumbs]

2. good news

thanks for posting

[gayisgood]

53. Great news! Now gays can openly serve US imperialism!

That's sarcasm, of course. But I never understood why the gay movement has pushed so hard for serving in the military openly or at all. What does the US military do? It uses violence to promote US hegemony all over the world. Why would anyone, gay or straight, want to be a part of that?

[xchrom]

3. recommend

[RZM]

6. It's good to see this first step

First DADT repeal, then civil unions everywhere, and finally full gay marriage.

Now let's move on to drug laws. First medical marijuana, then decriminalization of small amounts, followed by full legalization.

I predict the second path will play out before the first, but I hope both are done deals within 20 years.

[Hawkeye-X]

58. We're already at that route.

We've decriminalized up to 1 ounce of pot here in Denver. We are also a medical marijuana city, as well as hosting KushCon II that's happening right now. Also, we have a ballot ready for 2012 legalization along with California's ballot as well.

[David__77]

8. The implications cannot be understated.

This is culturally big. And if cultural issues are at center place in 2012, it is actually good for Democrats, I think.

[Pacifist Patriot]

11. I'd like to see DOMA fall next.

[David__77]

14. The judicial route is best for that.

We have a LOOOOOONG time before this could be legislatively repealed.

[Pacifist Patriot]

45. I'm not really thinking in terms of method, just demise.

[sofa king]

9. Good.

You know what automatically makes one army better than another, all other things being equal? Making that army out of motivated volunteers. You want a big, bad ass volunteer army in the middle of at least two stupid wars? You have to expand the pool of reliable recruits.

History shows that soldiers in the field respect the ability of their fellow soldiers above everything else. The ability of open soldiers in the field will be shown the day the act goes into effect, and they, in turn, will open the door to thousands of new enlistees who will kick ass.

Everyone wins, except the people we're fighting.

[Truth2Tell]

33. You want a big, bad ass volunteer army

in the middle of at least two stupid wars?

Well, no. I'd rather not. And will gay soldiers kick as much ass as any others? Sure.

But this is one of those rights that I strongly support yet would encourage people not to exercise. Like smoking tobacco.

[sofa king]

60. Truth be told, me neither.

What I want is a huge force capable of distributing humanitarian aid, building infrastructure, training local people, temporarily keeping the peace, and then getting the hell out when the getting is good. I'd like to see much higher numbers of Special Forces units, too. But I don't think I'm going to see any of that.

[Botany]

10. about time!

:bounce:

[Krakowiak]

12. this is great news....

I've been disappointed in the president, and he deserves a lot of credit if this gets through.

This is shaping up to be a great day.

[The Wizard]

13. McCrazy McCain

must have filled his Depend.

[Aramchek]

15. Progress!

[John Kerry VonErich]

16. The repeal is too weak

Yes it allows gays to serve openly, but does not give any guarantees of their safety bigoted fellow soldiers. ACCIDENTS happen and blind eyes do turn.

[JNelson6563]

19. OMG

You cannot legislate ignorance out of existence, at least not out here in reality land, perhaps it is possible on your planet.

Julie

[John Kerry VonErich]

28. You can legislate safety, which is what I'm asking.

Please don't insult me over this.

[Skinner]

21. If I'm reading this correctly...

It sounds as if you're saying the DADT repeal would let bigots harm or kill LGBT soldiers.

I haven't read the bill, but I'm going to go out on a limb and say that's not true.

[John Kerry VonErich]

23. I'm not saying the bill would allow it, boss.

I believe gays get it worse in the past 30 years than any minority. And I feel there are a ton of homophobic soldiers serving, so that means greater chance of crackpots snapping. I just want stronger millitary hate crime legislation to go along with the repeal.

[quickesst]

38. Good Goddamn....

...Would you want two armed guards escorting every gay or lesbian soldier to protect them from stupidity, ignorance, malovence or whatever? We didn't do that to African Americans after the civil rights act, and many suffered, but in the end, justice prevailed, almost, cause it's still there, but a lot better than even twenty years ago. There is always going to be hatred, bias, prejudice, which equates basically to ignorance. Some may suffer, but as a whole, this will pave the way to understanding, tolerance, and even acceptance. It's like bitching about someone offering you a million dollars, then saying at the last minute, "I'm going to keep ten bucks for a cab ride home", and you responding with, "you sorry motherfucker, that's a whole ten bucks". In the end, I guarantee that our military and it's performance will be enhanced tenfold when this is passed. I'm not gay, but I would feel much safer knowing that a gay or lesbian soldier who is dedicated by my side than some nitwit macho fuck who is worried about themselves more than their comrades. Nothing worth fighting for comes without some pain. Thanks.
quickesst

[John Kerry VonErich]

57. Tell ya what, with all due respect

DADT will be repealed. I say within 5 years an openly LGBT serviceperson will get KIA. If it turns out to be from friendly fire, not one DUer should start a thread crying about a hate crime.

[quickesst]

61. Don't know exactly where you're coming from...

////but as l stated before, progess comes with pain. Pat Tillman, as far as I know, was not gay, but the evidence as far as I see was that he was the victim of murder. Until proven otherwise that is what I believe. There will be injustice, to the point of murder, but if this is an honorable, and just cause, there will be repercussions. Ask me if I will put my life on the line protecting a gay or lesbian American citizen. My 380 automaitc and my 8shot 22 magnum will speak for themselves. I will forever believe that our military will be more efficient, more productive, and as a personal opinion, a whole lot smarter than we have been. Thanks.
quickesst

[John Kerry VonErich]

62. I was thinking millitary Matthew Shepherd laws

nt

[MadMaddie]

39. Same excuse used when the military was integrated

"It's for the safety of the black soldiers"!

There are a lot more gay soldiers than anyone knows and they have served honorably. Many of those gay soldiers are trained killers too so you can come to your own conclusion.

[John Kerry VonErich]

55. I never called for segregation

nt

[No Passaran]

40. We already have it. It's called UCMJ

I don't know what else to say to a crazy comment like that

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

64. Obama's signature will not eliminate homophobia

any more than Truman's signature eliminated racism in the service.

It's a step, and experience over time will help reduce the homophobia. Just as time and experience have reduced (but not eliminated) racism in the armed forces.

You're right, there is no guarantee of safety in the military. Nothing new there.

:hi:

[Skinner]

17. Awesome news!

I am thrilled!

[James48]

18. Captain's Bars....

My Captains's bars - earned over a 21 years U.S. Army Career, are proud today of my nation, as we move forward and remove this law.

Today, my Captain's bars are vertical, and symbolize the privilige of leading American soldiers as a company commander.



Tommorrow- they can just as well be turned sideways, so that they represent equality for the first time in over two hundred + years.
Don't Ask Don't Tell was an interim policy that may have made sense when it was initially put in place in 1993. It's role has long since
become obsolete, and it is time to make this change now.



Thank you U.S. Senate, and President Obama, for keeping your promise of removing Don't Ask Don't Tell, and
for keeping our Armed Forces the strongest in the world, now that we'll have the ability to
keep the BEST Solders, Airmen, Sailors and Marines IN our service.

No more lies. The time for change is here.

James H. Pratt,
Captain, U.S. Army (Retired)

[Krakowiak]

32. thank you for your service (nt)

[No Passaran]

41. Hear hear

Well said

SSG C
US Army, Retired

[barbtries]

20. i'm so glad

i'm going to turn on c-span to watch it happen.

[Matariki]

22. Yay! Yay! Finally!

[Mister Ed]

24. How sweet it is to be proven wrong.

I've written at least one post cynically declaring that no one should hold their breath for DADT repeal until and unless it can be a boondoggle for corporate special interests. Now we see that, every once in a while, our congresscritters will do the right thing, the sensible thing, the thing that's best for the nation.

[Name removed]

25. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[onenote]

26. You got one thing right in your post.

You are the fool.

[Pacifist Patriot]

46. I'm beginning to wonder if there is a limit to the size of our Ignore lists.

I may find out by the end of the year at this rate.

[tanyev]

63. LOL! Me, too.

[Pacifist Patriot]

66. Eee gads. I've added two more today and I've only been on for perhaps

twenty minutes. :-)

[SoapBox]

29. You are so wrong...

Wrong. That's all I can say.

There are millions of Gay and Lesbian persons in the world. Period.

Gay and Lesbian persons have existed forever. Period.

You cannot "legislate-the-Gay-away." Period.

Get over the Hate.

[racaulk]

36. This policy affects many more people than you may realize. nt

[MadMaddie]

42. Actually you are wrong!

The military led the way in desegration before the entire country did.

The tax cuts suck but they do not impact the rights of American citizens to serve in their military if they choose.

Not nearly good enough for you? Nothing will ever be good enough for you until a Republican is President again.

This happend because President Obama did this the right way and pushed the House and Senate to do their damn jobs. If he would have used a pen stroke it could have easily been overturned.

Every success he has accomplished people like you find some other excuse for why he is a failure or not good enough. I call it the black bar....(figure it out if you can since you are so smart!!)

[No Passaran]

44. How do you know?

I might be affected by this. My son or daughter might realize in the future that they're gay. My family has a tradition of serving in the armed forces and they might want to continue that same tradition. If they're gay, I'm glad they won't have to hide it.

[MrBig]

48. Even if you're right (which you're not)

It's about bringing down barriers. Even if you think it's a small step...it's a step. The only way for full equality is to break the wall down little by little. Things don't just happen overnight.

This is another step towards recognizing the equal rights of homosexuals and overturning a law that placed them on a lower level than the rest of those in the military.

[lonestarnot]

27. Far fucking out!

!

[Vidar]

30. K&R. Hopefully Obama won't turn this victory into defeat.

[MadMaddie]

47. So by signing the bill he will turn it into a defeat?

This is what he wanted since he took office. He wanted it to be fixed by Congress.

[Kali]

34. this is the best news I have read in a LONG fucking time

good on everybody for seeing reality and finally acting like human beings

[customerserviceguy]

35. While this is great

I don't necessarily think that it's a done deal. I can see Repukes attaching some kind of go-slow on implementing reform to a bill that the President would sign sometime early next year. They would repeal it entirely once they get a Rethug in again, and that could be as soon as 2013.

We'll see if both parties want to leave this issue alone after this legislation, but I doubt that's going to happen.

[MadMaddie]

49. The President would sign it before the end of the year

Have you noticed that once President Obama and the Democratic Congress pass something that the Republicans don't bring it back up?

Why? It was a niche issue to them none of these issues are important to them. They just play politics with Americans lives.

[customerserviceguy]

65. Some issues don't go away

I fully expect the Rethugs to try to repeal HCR, and it wouldn't surprise me to see them attack this vote, as well.

[Odin2005]

37. ABOUT DAMN TIME!

[wundermaus]

43. cspan not available but here is a live streaming feed from the senate

http://www.queerty.com/watch-live-stream-senates-dadt-debate-to-vote-on-bill-20100921/

[MadMaddie]

50. 65-31 It's repealed!!!

Picked up two more votes.

[rasputin1952]

51. And DADT is repealed...

65/31.

[davidwparker]

54. Now, get this one to Obama's desk for signature. Kudos

to Nancy Pelosi for decoupling it and getting it passed in the House.

Still disagree with removing impeachment, but I'm having a new attitude toward her. We've got to restore her as Speaker in 2012.

[IcyPeas]

56. several Republicans joined Democrats !!!!! hullo?????

aside from this being great news.....

"Several REPUBLICANS JOINED DEMOCRATS in supporting the bill.....

am I reading right?

[Tx4obama]

59. Yes, EIGHT republicans voted 'yes' on the final vote.

Republican that voted 'yes' were:
Collins
Snowe
Brown
Murkowski
Voinovich
Kirk
Ensign
Burr

http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=111&session=2&vote=00281

And the senators that did NOT vote were:
Bunning (R-KY)
Gregg (R-NH)
Hatch (R-UT)
Manchin (D-WV)