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Written by Lisa Neff, Staff writer
Jun 17, 2010
John McCain, R-Ariz., has said he will fight a vote to repeal “don’t ask, don’t tell.” – Photo: Courtesy
Activists seeking the repeal of the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy are lobbying U.S. senators to shore up a filibuster-proof majority of 60 votes.
“The repeal language in the defense authorization bill is at risk of being filibustered, stripped out or weakened by our opponents when the full Senate votes,” said Aubrey Sarvis, executive director of Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, a D.C.-based organization established to fight the ban and protect LGBT servicemembers. “Sen. John McCain has threatened to filibuster the entire defense budget to stop repeal.”
The vote to repeal DADT, the 17-year-old policy banning openly gay and lesbian servicemembers in the Armed Forces, will come when the full Senate takes up the National Defense Authorization Act, a big-money appropriations bill.
McCain, running for re-election in Arizona, has threatened a filibuster, arguing that lawmakers should not vote to repeal the policy before the Pentagon has completed a study of the issue.
“I want the people to know that we needed a complete study as to the effect on the impact of our battle effectiveness and morale before we repealed it,” McCain told News/Talk 92.3 KTAR in Arizona last week. “They’re ramming it through.”
In addition to working against a potential filibuster, activists are preparing for possible amendments from the Senate floor that could derail DADT’s repeal.
The floor debate could come as early as June 18, according to SLDN’s Trevor Thomas.
If the bill clears the Senate this summer, hurdles remain.
The full House already has approved its version of the National Defense Authorization Act, which included a repeal of DADT that provided for a delay in moving forward until the Defense Department completes a study on how to lift the ban. That means a conference committee would work to resolve differences between the House and Senate bills, providing another opportunity to review the legislation and requiring additional votes, possibly in the month before the general election.
Another factor is disagreement from the White House over some of the spending provisions proposed, though not the DADT repeal provision.
