Senate Votes To Repeal DADT

UPDATE: The Senate voted 65-31 Saturday to repeal Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. The legislation will now be sent to President Obama to sign into law.

Republican Senators John Ensign (R-Nev.) and Richard Burr (R-N.C.), who both voted against the procedural move to open the legislation up for debate, ultimately backed the bill. 

Following the vote, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs issued a statement saying that the President looks forward to signing the bill into law.

“As the President has long said, ending ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,’ and allowing gay men and women to serve openly in the military, will strengthen our national security while upholding the basic equality on which this nation was founded,” Gibbs said.

Before taking effect, the repeal still needs to be certified by the President, the Secretary of Defense and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. When asked Saturday how long they expected the certification process to take, Armed Services Chair Carl Levin (D-Mich.) that he was not sure, but that there will be close consultation between the involved parties and Congress.

WASHINGTON- Nearly two decades after the implementation of Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell, the Senate has advanced legislation that lays the groundwork for the repeal of the controversial law banning openly gay soldiers from serving in the military.

A 63-33 procedural vote Saturday defeated a Republican filibuster of the bill, opening it up for a final 3:00 PM vote.

The legislation received support from all Democratic Senators, aside from the recently-elected Joe Manchin (W.Va.), and six Republicans, including retiring Senator George Voinovich (R-Ohio) and newcomer Mark Kirk (R-Ill.). 

Although 60 votes were needed to advance the legislation, the final vote requires only a simple majority.

Following the vote, Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.), who shepherded the bill through the entire process, thanked the Republicans who crossed party lines and described the bill as a nonpartisan achievement.

“Repealing Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell is the right thing to do whether you’re liberal, conservative, Democrat or Republican,” Lieberman said during a press conference. “It’s consistent with American values.”