Posted on 05/26/2010 11:20:15 AM PDT by Maelstorm
The Senate Democratic leadership is one vote closer to the fifteen votes they need to move a measure that would repeal 17-year-federal law banning openly gay Americans from serving in the military from the Senate Armed Services Committee to the Senate floor, NPR's Liz Halloran reports.
Earlier today, Sen. Ben Nelson (D-NB) announced his support for the measure.
"I don't believe Nebraskans want to continue a policy that not only encourages but requires people to be deceptive and to lie," Nelson said in a prepared statement. "The 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' policy does just that."
"It also encourages suspicion and senior officers to look the other way," he said. "In a military which values honesty and integrity, this policy encourages deceit."
According to Halloran, proponents of the amendment think they have the votes to get it out of committee. They targeted five on-the-fence Democrats on the committee: Nelson, Robert Byrd, Evan Bayh, Jim Webb, and Bill Nelson. "Both Nelsons will vote in favor of the amendment, Webb will not, and the decisions of Byrd and Bayh have not yet been made public," she says.
(Excerpt) Read more at npr.org ...
Now that his career’s over, he gets to vote the way he really wanted to all along.
Ben Nelson is a complete turncoat. I’m sad for Nebraskans.
He’s toast in 2012.
onwards! rump wranglers!
Too bad they can’t recall the guy.
Unfortunately there’s a lot of time between now and then, and the damage he can wreak might be untold.
congress have play games with guys for Years
I was thinking the same thing. Don’t voters have the ability to recall representatives in the House or Senate?
I seem to recall some measure to do so, but it requires a lot of petitions.
He’s officially a lame duck with 2 and a half years to go.
Of course he will, he’s a liberal Democrat.
Its amazing to watch the parallels between Obama and Clinton and their attempts to accomplish the Marxist wish list in their first year. Healthcare, gays in the military, crippling business, abortion...on and on. Anyone who thinks there’s a difference in Democrats is blind and deaf. Every one of them is dedicated to destroying this country as it has existed since the founding.
Because Obama's at -22 in approval ratings (strong approve vs. strong disapprove). This means his far left base is unhappy with him.
They need some red meat for the gays (Barbara Boxer's pinkos) to shore up his support for Nov.
Of course he will, now that he has no political future, why not set himself up to have some fun in his retirement?
Ben Nelson is a moron.
After healthcare, this guy should be shoring up his voters! But he seems intent to just screw every one of them, the h@ll with them!
Benedict is SO toast. He doesn’t give a shite about what Nebraskans want (outside of the liberal population centers around Omaha and Lincoln, my condolences to FReepers there). He thinks us hayseeds are too stupid to remember anything by 2012. Heck, the majority of people in his own hometown don’t want anything to do with him.
The 17th Amendment does not proscribe recall, so I guess the states can by Constitutional amendment/ statute provide for recall of senators by the electors.
This is very very bad for the US military.
How many staffers are alternative lifestyle predators? I suspect the 15 will have such staffers who do the vote.
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