Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev) failed to get the 60 votes needed on a procedural motion
to start debate on the National Defense Authorization Act. The bill would repeal the Don't Ask Don't
Tell ban on gays serving openly in the military. The vote was 57-40.
It looks like most Republicans stuck to their pledge to pass no new legislation until Congress can
reach a deal on the Bush-era tax cut and government spending for 2011.
Senator Scott Brown of Massachusetts and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska both had been supporters of
the repeal, but both voted no. Democratic Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia also voted no.
Several Republican Senators have said they would support the repeal of the ban, but want to have
open debate on the defense bill; including the ability to introduce amendments. They included Senator
Collins of Maine who voted in favor of cloture, and also Brown and Murkowski.
Senators Reid and Collins were working together to bring the NDAA to a vote, the Republicans
were talking about 10 amendments and the Democrats wanted to make 5 amendments.
So will the defense authorization be held off until next year? If so what changes will be made?
Will SEC.566 remain? It does not seem that the present bill would be scrapped and a new one
introduced, more than likely the bill as it now stands will be reintroduced; and then the debate
can continue.
Jerald Terwilliger
National Chairman
American Cold War Veterans
"We Remember"
---------------- "And so the greatest of American triumphs... became a peculiarly joyless victory. We had won the Cold War, but there would be no parades." -- Robert M. Gates, 1996
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