When Will Congress Repeal DADT?

by Patrick Appel

Jason Mazzone grows impatient:

President Obama vowed to end “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell,” the Clinton-era compromise on gay and lesbian soldiers serving in the military. But Obama’s window of opportunity for ending DADT is quickly closing. At the end of May, the House voted 234-194 to repeal DADT as part of a military spending bill. Just five Republicans supported the repeal and twenty-six Democrats voted in opposition. The Senate Armed Services Committee has also approved the proposed repeal. But the full Senate, which was expected to consider the repeal measure over the summer, has not yet taken it up and Republicans have threatened a filibuster when and if the Senate does.

With the 2010 congressional election two months away, the chances of repealing DADT before the election occurs are fast diminishing.