Democrats Ready to Move DADT Repeal

Senate Democrats “are finally ready to press ahead with a repeal of the ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ military policy banning gays from openly serving, hoping that a key objector — Arizona Republican Sen. John McCain — is ready to soften his opposition,” Roll Call reports.

Democrats had put the issue — contained in the Defense Authorization bill — on the backburner until after McCain’s Aug. 24 primary. McCain, who prevailed in the race against conservative former Rep. J.D. Hayworth, is opposed to overturning the 1993 policy until after the Pentagon completes a review of how such a move would affect the military.

But Senate Democrats are hoping McCain, ranking member on Armed Services, may be willing to let the defense measure and the DADT language move forward, since he no longer has to worry about a challenge from his party’s right flank. They are looking to bring the bill up as soon as Sept. 20.

“We don’t expect much pushback from McCain,” one Democratic aide said.

Democrats are “largely unified behind the effort, although Virginia Sen. Jim Webb shares McCain’s position that Congress shouldn’t act until the Pentagon has completed its review, which is slated for release in December.”

The defense authorization measure, an “annual bill that typically passes with bipartisan support, includes a handful of other controversial provisions that could prove dicey for vulnerable Democrats this fall.”

For instance, Republicans have targeted a provision that would allow military hospitals to perform abortions.

But beyond the politics of the defense bill, the calendar may also complicate its passage. Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) is looking to move a long-stalled small business lending bill, a continuing resolution to fund the government and a food safety bill. Senate Democrats will also have to devise a plan to extend some or all of the tax cuts enacted in 2001 and 2003 under President George W. Bush.

(credit image – daylife/getty)