DON’T ASK DON’T TELL

 

House votes to end ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’

Action follows Senate panel passage of measure on gays in military

getCSS(“3088867”) Video   ‘Don’t ask, don’t tell’ closer to repeal
May 27: As the repeal of the military’s “Don’t ask, don’t tell” policy passes the House, Rachel Maddow reports on the legislative details of the repeal and the steps necessary for the repeal to take place.

msnbc.com

getCSS(“3088867”) Video: Capitol Hill      ‘Don’t ask, don’t tell’ repeal moves through Congress
NBC News Congressional producers Ken Strickland and Shawna Thomas update Rachel Maddow on the news of the repeal of the military’s “Don’t ask, don’t tell” policy as it comes up for a vote in the House of Representatives. ‘Don’t ask, don’t tell’ closer to repeal Wall Street greed grows as banks feud Conflicting numbers on oil disaster size getCSS(“3088874”) INTERACTIVE Get political at Newsvine
Read, rate and discuss the latest news. getCSS(“3053751”)   Tweets from inside the Beltway

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1. davidgregory Sorry that would be Bullpen Gospels by Dirk Hayhurst11:03pm on 5/27/2010
2. davidgregory Plane diverted to Baltimore, catching a ride home in the pouring rain, reading the Bullpen Gospels by Dick Hayhurst.10:58pm on 5/27/2010
3. chucktodd Was thinking same! Schumer!!! RT @RicVldz: what happened to the bill of rights for airline travelers, how did that get missed?9:49pm on 5/27/2010
4. chucktodd This could happen folks RT @LeoShane: Think Obama will veto the #DADT repeal over the JSF 2nd engine debate?9:47pm on 5/27/2010
5. chucktodd RT @michaeljm: @chucktodd It should be against the law for them not to.9:29pm on 5/27/2010
6. chucktodd Here’s a “#funfact,” did u know when u r sitting on the tarmac for a LONG delay, it is against the law for airlines to serve alcohol?9:26pm on 5/27/2010
7. chucktodd RT @lap58: @chucktodd is this BO first time in chi-town9:23pm on 5/27/2010
8. RussertXM_NBC Congrats to @SailorX for doing it live on MS 2nite. Another big win for Pelosi #Pelosi=closer9:06pm on 5/27/2010
9. RussertXM_NBC At Fenway and I find this ad bad luck #Sawx http://twitpic.com/1romcd9:05pm on 5/27/2010
10. chucktodd Ah Dulles, is there a worse airport? Seriously. Now they can’t get this new tram system to work.8:16pm on 5/27/2010
11. RussertXM_NBC @chucktodd Guess I’ll have to skip the Meineke Car Care Bowl. NYE Pittsburgh!8:13pm on 5/27/2010
12. chucktodd RT @StateDept: White House released the National Security Strategy (#NSS) today. Read it here: http://go.usa.gov/3Wz @WhiteHouse_Blog8:12pm on 5/27/2010
13. chucktodd @RussertXM_NBC here’s the deal, theU will be in the BCS title game, and that won’t be for a week later. Perfect setup.8:06pm on 5/27/2010
14. chucktodd It’s been more than a year (Feb ’09) since the Obamas have overnighted in Chicago. #funfact8:02pm on 5/27/2010
15. RussertXM_NBC @chucktodd New Year’s Day at Heinz Field and watching hockey? We’d be a long way from Miami.7:49pm on 5/27/2010
16. chucktodd Most important story that didn’t get enuff play. Rollout of Obama doctrine. Our @dailyrundown discussion. http://bit.ly/9GAsED7:33pm on 5/27/2010
17. chucktodd Where do we watch? RT @robrosson: @chucktodd Why not on the Mall like Tony Kornheiser said?7:30pm on 5/27/2010
18. chucktodd Room for @RussertXM_NBC? RT @mattmentecky: @chucktodd hey, you should make the trip to Pittsburgh, my treat for tickets7:29pm on 5/27/2010
19. chucktodd Not sure Harry Reid himself could have scripted a more helpful final two weeks of the #nvsen GOP primary for the Dems as we’re seeing.7:25pm on 5/27/2010
20. chucktodd Heinz Field, not FedEx RT @WTOP: Report: Capitals to play in Winter Classic – http://bit.ly/dlwwnH7:12pm on 5/27/2010

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getCSS(“3053751”) Slideshow   The Week in Political Cartoons
Msnbc.com’s political cartoonists take a look back at the past week.

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WASHINGTON – The House of Representatives on Thursday delivered a victory to President Barack Obama and gay rights groups by approving a proposal to repeal the law that allows gays to serve in the military only if they don’t disclose their sexual orientation.

The 234-194 vote to overturn the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy reflected a view among many in Congress that America was ready for a military in which gays and straights can stand side by side in the trenches.

“I know that our military draws its strength on the integrity of our unified force, and current law challenges this integrity by creating two realities within the ranks,” Democratic Rep. Susan Davis.

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In a statement after the House vote, Obama hailed the day’s congressional action as “important bipartisan steps toward repeal.”

“This legislation will help make our armed forces even stronger and more inclusive by allowing gay and lesbian soldiers to serve honestly and with integrity,” Obama said.

Republicans, who voted overwhelmingly against it, cited statements by some military leaders that they need more time to study how a change in the law could affect the lives and readiness of service members.

Senate panel on same path
The House vote came just hours after the Senate Armed Services Committee took the same course and voted 16-12 in favor of repealing the 1993 law. In both cases the measure was offered as an amendment to a defense spending bill.

Obama and leading Democrats, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi had actively supported the repeal so that gays could serve in the military without fear of being exposed and discharged.

“This is the beginning of the end of a shameful ban on open service by lesbian and gay troops that has weakened our national security,” Joe Solmonese, president of Human Rights Campaign, a leading gay rights organization, said after the Senate panel’s vote.

During an all-day House debate on the bill approving more than $700 billion in spending for defense programs, Republicans repeated statements by military service chiefs that Congress should not act before the Pentagon completes a study on the impact of a repeal.

Congress going first “is the equivalent to turning to our men and women in uniform and their families and saying, ‘Your opinion, your view, do not count,'” said Rep. Howard “Buck” McKeon, the top Republican on the House Armed Services Committee.

Democratic supporters stressed that the amendment was written so that the repeal would not go into effect until after the Pentagon publishes in December the results of a survey on how service members and their families view the change, and until the president, the defense secretary and the Joint Chiefs of Staff certify that the repeal will not affect the military’s ability to fight.

The chief sponsor of the amendment, Rep. Patrick Murphy, who served in the Iraq War, said that when he was in Baghdad “my teams did not care whether a fellow soldier was straight or gay if they could fire their assault rifle or run a convoy down ambush alley and do their job so everyone would come home safely.”

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer said that of the 13,500 members of the military who have been discharged under “don’t ask, don’t tell,” more than 1,000 filled critical occupations, such as engineers and interpreters.

He compared the arguments of the opposition to 1948 speeches in Congress when lawmakers warned that integrating the troops would undermine morale in the military.

Senate filibuster likely
The drive to repeal the ban still faces a tough road ahead in the full Senate, where Republicans are likely to filibuster it.

“I think it’s really going to be very harmful to the morale and effectiveness of our military,” said Sen. John McCain, the top Republican on the Armed Services Committee and a leading opponent of the repeal.

The Senate probably will take up the bill next month.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates has said he supports repeal but would prefer that Congress wait for the December report.

Under “don’t ask, don’t tell,” military leaders don’t investigate a service member’s sexual orientation as long as the person does not disclose that he or she is gay or has a same-sex relationship, which are grounds for dismissal.