Sen. Scott Brown to vote against DADT repeal

Community, activists react to anticipated vote.

Sen. Scott Brown will vote down the compromised repeal of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," the military's ban on gays and lesbians serving openly, when it comes before the Senate Armed Services Committee Thursday, May 27.

"I am keeping an open mind, but I do not support moving ahead until I am able to finish my review, the Pentagon completes its study and we can be assured that a new policy can be implemented without jeopardizing the mission of our military," Brown said in a statement.

Sen. Susan Collins, a Maine Republican, is now the only GOP member to have publicly expressed support the repeal.

"It is very hard for me to see a senator from the Bay State voting against this repeal," Aubrey Sarvis, Executive Director of Servicemembers Legal Defense Network (SLDN) told the Boston Globe's Political Intelligence blog.

Indeed, a poll released Tuesday revealed that a majority of Massachusetts voters support a DADT repeal. The poll, conducted by Brown's pollster, Neil Newhouse, for the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), surveyed 500 voters and found that 77 percent supports repeal. In addition, the majority of voters who supported Brown in January's special election (62 percent) and the majority who voted for him (67 percent) supports repeal.

A recent CNN poll revealed that nearly 80 percent of Americans nationwide support a repeal of DADT. "Support is widespread, even among Republicans," CNN polling director Keating Holland said in a statement. "Nearly six in ten Republicans favor allowing openly gay individuals to serve in the military. There is a gender gap, with 85 percent of women and 71 percent of men favoring the change, but support remains high among both groups." According to the results of the CNN survey, also released on Tuesday, one in five Americans is opposed to a repeal.

"It's an outrage that a senator from Massachusetts in the year 2010 would oppose repealing 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell,'" said Arline Isaacson, Co-chair of the Massachusetts Gay & Lesbian Political Caucus. "Brown represents a state that supports anti-discrimination laws and marriage equality for LGBTs. How can he plausibly claim a reasonable rationale for allowing gays and lesbians who choose to serve their country -- to fight and die for their country -- to not do so honestly and openly. His opposition is reprehensible."

Brown said that while he will keep an "open mind" with regards to future efforts, he believes that a DADT repeal should wait until the Pentagon has completed its study on the issue, the results of which are due Dec. 1.

"For some time now, I have been seeking the opinions and recommendations of service chiefs, commanders in the field, and, most importantly, our junior soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines," said Brown, who is also a lieutenant colonel in the Massachusetts National Guard. "I believe we have a responsibility to the men and women of our armed forces to be thorough in our consideration of this issue and take their opinions seriously."

The House Rules Committee is taking up debate Wednesday, May 26, regarding proposed amendments to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), one of which is the DADT repeal, presented by Rep. Patrick Murphy. A vote is expected on Thursday.

A compromised repeal is under consideration, following a Monday meeting between Sarvis and unnamed White House officials and advocates.

"Log Cabin Republicans are disappointed that [Brown] will not support clearing this arcane policy off the decks," R. Clarke Cooper, Executive Director of the Log Cabin Republicans in Washington, told the Boston Globe. He believes that this week's vote "would support the work the Pentagon is doing."

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