Kirk joins fellow Republicans blocking bill to repeal DADT
Washington, D.C. -
The Senate failed to pass the Defense Authorization bill, which includes the repeal of the controversial anti-gay "don't ask, don't tell" policy.
With sixty votes needed to move the bill forward, Senate Republicans - including Illinois freshman Senator Mark Kirk - blocked the effort with a 57-40 procedural vote on Thursday.
"Today, 40 members of the U.S. Senate stood in the way of progress, allowing the U.S. to remain with Turkey as the only members of NATO to prohibit gays and lesbians from serving openly in the military," stated Jacob Meister, Chairman of The Civil Rights Agenda.
Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), a moderate, said that Republicans needed more time offered to debate, but Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) pushed for Thursday's vote saying it was time to end discrimination of gays in the military. Collins was the only Republican to advance the bill.
The ban on gays in the military has been in place since 1993.
Sen. John McCain, the top Republican on the Armed Services Committee, has been blocking the repeal because of concerns about the impact on military readiness.
The Pentagon issued a long-awaited report earlier this month saying overturning the ban on "don't ask, don't tell" would not create long-term problems.
Kirk voted against repealing DADT twice as a House member, but said he would carefully review the Pentagon report.
An unnamed staffer told the Huffington Post that a majority of callers to Kirk's Senate office wanted to see DADT repealed. LGBT Change and TCRA report that his office was flooded with calls which caused the office phone lines to go down.
Gay rights groups, including TCRA and Equality Illinois, continue to urge Illinois voters to call Kirk's office. (Capitol switchboard 202-224-3121)
Shortly after the vote, President Barack Obama urged Senators to revisit DADT before the end of the year, but repeal is in considerable doubt during the current congressional session.
According to a recent CNN poll, 78% of Americans believe that DADT is a bad law and that lesbian and gay servicemembers must be allowed to serve openly in the military.
With sixty votes needed to move the bill forward, Senate Republicans - including Illinois freshman Senator Mark Kirk - blocked the effort with a 57-40 procedural vote on Thursday.
"Today, 40 members of the U.S. Senate stood in the way of progress, allowing the U.S. to remain with Turkey as the only members of NATO to prohibit gays and lesbians from serving openly in the military," stated Jacob Meister, Chairman of The Civil Rights Agenda.
Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), a moderate, said that Republicans needed more time offered to debate, but Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) pushed for Thursday's vote saying it was time to end discrimination of gays in the military. Collins was the only Republican to advance the bill.
The ban on gays in the military has been in place since 1993.
Sen. John McCain, the top Republican on the Armed Services Committee, has been blocking the repeal because of concerns about the impact on military readiness.
The Pentagon issued a long-awaited report earlier this month saying overturning the ban on "don't ask, don't tell" would not create long-term problems.
Kirk voted against repealing DADT twice as a House member, but said he would carefully review the Pentagon report.
An unnamed staffer told the Huffington Post that a majority of callers to Kirk's Senate office wanted to see DADT repealed. LGBT Change and TCRA report that his office was flooded with calls which caused the office phone lines to go down.
Gay rights groups, including TCRA and Equality Illinois, continue to urge Illinois voters to call Kirk's office. (Capitol switchboard 202-224-3121)
Shortly after the vote, President Barack Obama urged Senators to revisit DADT before the end of the year, but repeal is in considerable doubt during the current congressional session.
According to a recent CNN poll, 78% of Americans believe that DADT is a bad law and that lesbian and gay servicemembers must be allowed to serve openly in the military.
