Senate votes to allow gays to serve openly in U.S. military
December 18, 2010
In an historic move, the U.S. Senate voted Saturday to allow gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military. [LA Times]
By a vote of 65 to 31, the Senate voted to repeal the controversial “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy towards gays that was pushed by then-President Clinton back in 1993.
The measure, already approved by the House, is expected to be signed by President Obama next week, fulfilling one of his major campaign promises from 2008.
“The Senate has taken an historic step toward ending a policy that undermines our national security while violating the very ideals that our brave men and women in uniform risk their lives to defend,” President Obama said in a prepared statement.
” By ending ‘don’t ask, don’t tell,” no longer will our nation be denied the service of thousands of patriotic Americans forced to leave the military, despite years of exemplary performance, because they happen to be gay. And no longer will many thousands more be asked to live a lie in order to serve the country they love.”
Both California senators Barbara Boxer and Dianne Feinstein voted in support of the new law.
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