Congress Moves to Repeal Gay Ban in Military

Lawmakers came a step closer Thursday to allowing gays to serve openly in the U.S. military by voting to repeal the divisive Clinton-era "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" law.

By a 234-194 vote, the House of Representatives delivered a huge victory to President Obama, who has backed the move along with military leaders and gay rights groups.

"This legislation will help make our armed forces even stronger and more inclusive by allowing gay and lesbian Soldiers to serve honestly and with integrity," he said in a statement after the vote.

Cheers erupted in the House chamber after the vote to advance the repeal as an amendment to a huge Defense Department funding bill. It came just hours after a key Senate panel took similar action against the 1993 law.

"Lawmakers today stood on the right side of history," said Joe Solmonese, president of the gay rights group Human Rights Campaign.

But several legislative hurdles -- including a vote in the full Senate and both chambers reconciling their versions -- remain before Obama can sign the plan into law.

"With our military fighting two wars, why on Earth would we tell 13,500 able-bodied Americans that their service is not needed?" asked Rep. Patrick Murphy, a Democrat who sponsored the amendment. A former Soldier, Murphy was the first Iraq war veteran to serve in Congress.

Republicans largely voted against the plan, urging lawmakers to wait until the Pentagon completes its review, due Dec. 1, of a repeal's potential impact on troop readiness and other aspects of military life.

"It's going to be very harmful to the morale and affect the battle effectiveness of our military," said Republican Sen. John McCain, who sought to derail the repeal drive.

He backed calls by chiefs of the Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force to act only after the Pentagon review was complete.

Under a White House-backed compromise crafted by Independent Sen. Joe Lieberman, lawmakers would vote now on lifting the ban but let the Defense Department decide when and how quickly to implement the repeal after completing its review.

The repeal would also require certification from Obama, Defense Secretary Robert Gates and the top U.S. uniformed military officer, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Adm. Mike Mullen, that it would not harm the military.

Despite Thursday's encouraging votes, activists warned they would not let up the pressure until the repeal was a done deal.

Army veteran Aubrey Sarvis, executive director of the Servicemembers Legal Defense Netowrk that offers legal services to troops impacted or discharged by the military's gay ban, urged Congress and the Pentagon to "stay on track" to get the repeal finalized.

"It's time for this policy to go; it doesn't reflect America's best values of equal opportunity," Lieberman said after the Senate Armed Services Committee voted 16-12 for the repeal.

Democratic Sen. Carl Levin, who chairs the Armed Services panel, said he was "confident" the deal would clear the full Senate because of support from military leaders and "the very careful way in which it's going to be implemented."

Among the change's opponents was Democratic Sen. Jim Webb, a former U.S. Navy secretary.

"I see no reason to pre-empt the process that our senior Defense Department leaders put into motion, and I am concerned that many members of the military would view such a move as disrespectful to the importance of their roles in this process," he said in a statement.

On Tuesday, Gates offered lukewarm support for the compromise approach, saying he would have preferred to wait until after the Pentagon's review but signaling he still backed repealing the ban.

Ex-CIA director Gates, a Republican holdover from President George W. Bush's cabinet, wields hefty influence with many lawmakers who see him as a tough-minded voice on national security and a counterweight to more liberal voices in the Obama administration.

The Pentagon review is due to assess how changing the law would impact military readiness, effectiveness and "unit cohesion," while seeking the views of troops and military families as well as taking into account the experience of NATO allies and other armies that permit gays to serve openly.