With my exams finished, I just watched the Senate’s debate (or whatever it is they do there) and vote on the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” – the ban on openly gay service in the American military. With 65 Senators voting in favor and 31 against, the Senate passed the repeal.
The vote was a foregone conclusion, as the body had voted for cloture (which ends debate) by a 63-33 margin earlier in the day. Unlike the final vote, the cloture vote requires at least 60 senators voting in favor. Given that it had met this threshold, the final vote would clearly surpass the simple majority necessary for repeal. The House approved the measure earlier in the week. On the Senate’s cloture vote, the Republicans voting “yes” were: Sens. Scott Brown (R-Mass), Susan Collins (R-Alaska), Mark Kirk (R-Ill.), Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) and George Voinovich (R-Ohio). Now the bill will go to the President’s desk for his signature, after which it will become law.
This legislation finally ends a discriminatory policy that undermined both American values and security. I applaud everyone involved in the effort.