Like many others of you I'm sure, yesterday I watched several roll call votes in the Senate. Two of the votes were on DADT repeal. (The other on the DREAM Act, where I remain appalled by the cavalier way Kay Hagan signaled her vote, and at the votes by Hagan, Baucus, Tester, Nelson and Pryor against cloture.)
As someone who has followed DADT repeal for a long time, who knows numerous active military personnel who are gay, and as someone who lobbied on Capitol Hill for repeal, I am extremely gratified at the vote yesterday and at the prospect of bill signing later this week and of real repeal of the policy very soon. This is a tremendous step forward by our country in terms of justice and equality; it will also augment our national security in many ways.
Given that several senators in the end voted against cloture but then for repeal (they obviously wanted to go both ways), I was curious as to what supporters of the other side have been saying about the DADT repeal vote. Are there people who were anti-DADT repeal who also now see that this will not be so bad? Are they willing to 'fess up already?
Well, maybe a few. But the reality is that, at present, our opponents are still venting after going down to defeat.
There are tons of comments out there that could be quoted -- here are three so you get the feel.
From Free Republic you get this:
Being ex military I don’t think this is the catastrophe many would believe except in a political way (it’s a loss for our side and yes the American people). Soldiers have their own way of handling these things and those of you who served well know what I mean.
And you get this:
If I was soldier, I could live with the knowledge someone was gay. I don’t care if they’re doing it, as long as they don’t make it MY business. Live and let live.
And you also get this:
Republicans who voted for this are on the "target list" for their next elections. By the way, for those who didn’t know, Senator-elect Pat Toomey of Pennsylvania supports the homosexualization of the military. Mark this day as the day between "Proud American Military" and "Ubama’s Homo Military". So down the road, when trading military stories the first question will be, "So, when did you serve - - in the homo military or the real one before that?"
I love Cahir O'Doherty's headline on Irish Central (Manhattan), which states Conservatives stunned by DADT repeal vote. The article is interesting and can be read here.