Gay service members are one step closer to equality this morning after an historical vote approving the repeal of DADT by the full House and the Senate Armed Services Committee late last night, The New York Times is reporting.
The controversial repeal first passed the Armed Services Committee by a vote of 18-10 according to the NY Times. Although most news outlets are reporting the vote was 16-12. Sen. Susan Collins of Maine was the lone Republican on the Committee to vote for repeal. Sen. Jim Webb from Virginia was the lone Democrat to vote against the measure.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who said early on that she would not push for a vote unless it would pass, held the roll call at the House of Representatives only after a last attempt to sway her colleagues.
She said, "On Memorial Day, America will come together and honor all who served our nation in uniform. I urge my colleagues to vote for the repeal of this discriminatory policy of 'don't ask, don't tell' and make America more American."
By a 234-194 vote, the repeal passed. The LA Times is reporting that 26 Democrats joined 168 Republicans in voting no.
As expected, Republican members of Congress were not happy with the outcome. In fact, they were not happy that a vote took place at all. "We're saying, we're shoving this down your throat, we don't care,"' Rep. Louie Gohmert from Texas told the Washington Post. He added, "The military is not a social experiment."
President Obama released this statement last night the read, "I am pleased that both the House of Representatives and the Senate Armed Services Committee took important bipartisan steps toward repeal tonight... Our military is made up of the best and bravest men and women in our nation, and my greatest honor is leading them as Commander-in-Chief. 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."
Both versions of the measure, one at the House and one at the Senate, state that any repeal of DADT would only take effect after the completion of the Pentagon Working Group study due to Congress by Dec. 1. The review, conducted by the Joint Chiefs of Staff, will detail how the repeal would be implemented and how it would affect service members.
There is no timeline on when we can expect the full Senate vote.
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