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09 Dec 2010 21:43

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Politics, U.S.: The best one-sentence description of how DADT repeal failed

  • A procedural failsafe that’s theoretically meant to protect the rights of minorities was just used to restrict the rights of minorities.
  • Ezra Klein • Regarding Democrats’ failure to repeal Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell today in the Senate. Klein is, of course, referring to the filibuster, which allows 41/100 Senators to block any legislation from passing. Note: According to Klein, this quote (or the spirit of it) originated from his ace intern, Dylan Matthews.  source
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink

02 Dec 2010 10:54

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Politics: McCain stands firm on “don’t ask” … even after that study

  • I am not saying this law should never change. I am simply saying that it may be premature to make such a change at this time and in this manner, without further consideration of this report and further study of the issue by Congress.
  • Sen. John McCain • Speaking during a Senate hearing today about “don’t ask, don’t tell.” McCain claims that repealing the law now would be “premature,” and points to numbers about Army and Marine combat units not being quite ready for the change. This is despite the fact that the military’s highest-ups have all made the case that the policy should change as soon as possible. Hm. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

30 Nov 2010 22:12

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U.S.: Most soldiers OK with gays openly serving, but many aren’t

  • 30% of military think gay soldiers will make it harder to work
  • 43% of Marines think that openly gay soldiers could be a distraction
  • 48% of Army combat units think it’ll have a negative effect on their job
  • 58% of Marine combat units feel the same way about the thang source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

29 Nov 2010 01:30

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Politics: Max Headroom: John McCain all over place with DADT rhetoric

  • Was Obama an inexperienced politician when he said he’d repeal “Don’t Ask, Don’t tell”? Well, he ran a better campaign than this dude back in 2008. (Thought we’d forget that, didn’t you?) Anyway, John McCain was on CNN’s “State of the Union” Sunday trying to explain how the current gays in the military policy makes sense, in a way that’s giving Candy Crowley some real meat to chew upon. Meanwhile, large chunks of Americans think the policy should be repealed. And that includes this guy’s wife.
  • See, I’m not like Obama at all! The storyline we’re expecting to see in the next few months goes like this: Democratic senators, like Claire McCaskill, will be falling over themselves to differentiate themselves from the president. Don’t expect her to have a fat lip from playing basketball anytime soon.
  • Soft Black Friday story ruined It seems like your normal mid-afternoon CNN story that you can completely ignore until around the 45-second mark, when the anti-fur protesters show up. Then it gets interesting. Hey protesters: People who watch CNN in the daytime don’t buy fur; they can’t afford it.
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

22 Nov 2010 20:41

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Politics, U.S.: Gay rights advocates win tiny, tiny, tiny victory

  • plea Gay rights groups asked the Pentagon to expedite its release of its study on the effects of repealing Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell.
  • response Defense Secretary Bob Gates agreed, and bumped up the release of the report…by one day. One whole day! source
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink

18 Nov 2010 22:24

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Politics: Democrats make headway on DADT repeal

  • NO Murkowski won’t vote against Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell repeal source
  • » It gets better for gay teens. And it may get better for openly gay soldiers after the Senate takes up Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell repeal. Lisa Murkowski, who looks to be keeping her Senate seat out of Joe Miller’s hands, said today that she wouldn’t vote against repeal, the first Republican to openly pledge to do so. Joe “Connecticut For” Lieberman says that the Democrats have the votes needed to pass repeal, so long as Republicans get as much time to debate the bill as they want. We’ll believe this when we see it, but things are looking good for repeal advocates.
Posted by Seth Millstein • 0 Comments • Permalink

12 Nov 2010 15:25

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U.S.: Supreme Court: “Don’t ask” stays put in the military for now

  • sigh … “Don’t ask, don’t tell” was blocked in a lower court, only to be temporarily allowed again by a federal appeals court.
  • … sigh It was appealed to the Supreme Court, where they kept the ban intact while the lower courts duke it out. Wait it out, kids. source
  • » What happens next: The policy will stay in place until at least mid-March, when a federal appeals court decides what happens next. A lot suggests it won’t hold water – for example, a Defense Department panel recently found that the policy could be reversed with little to no negative effect on troops, which goes against most arguments being made by opponents of “don’t ask.”
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

05 Nov 2010 21:08

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U.S.: Preliminary “Don’t Ask” ruling winds its way to Supreme Court

  • federal A federal judge in California ruled the military’s controversial “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy unconstitutional; Obama then appeals.
  • appeals After the appeal was filed, the 9th Circuit ruled that the policy should stay in place while the case goes to trial – a win for the Pentagon.
  • supreme The Log Cabin Republicans have now appealed that decision to the Supreme Court in hopes of getting it overturned again. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

01 Nov 2010 21:25

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U.S.: Will “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” soften during the appeals process?

  • NO “don’t ask” won’t go away while Obama defends it source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

20 Oct 2010 21:44

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Politics: Obama’s record on gay rights pretty crappy so far, in our book

  • Obama, Obama, Obama … sigh. Look, we know you have the military in your ear. We know that the elections are coming up. We know that your party is probably going to lose a lot of seats come November. But the way you’ve handled this “don’t ask, don’t tell” mess – and gay rights in general – is pretty sad. It’s like you’re paying lip service to the idea of expanding gay rights while heading the opposite direction when the opportunity arises. Your administration’s quick appeal of a lower court’s decision repealing DADT was like dumping water all over many of your supporters. Sure, you can go on about them being unable to see the forest for the trees, but you don’t even seem to be interested in the forest at this point. And don’t even get us started on the fact that you don’t support gay marriage. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 
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