Unbelievable:
Last-Ditch Move to Block Repeal of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’
By MICHAEL D. SHEAR
11:15 p.m. | Updated Just hours before President Obama plans to sign on Wednesday the repeal of the military’s 17-year ban on gays serving openly in the armed forces, Republicans appear to be trying one last legislative maneuver to block the change.
Republicans in the Senate have filed an amendment to a sweeping defense authorization bill that would require the four military service chiefs to be part of the certification process called for in the bill that repeals the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy.
That would put Marine Corps chief General James Amos, a vocal opponent of the repeal, in line to delay or potentially prevent its implementation. The amendment was filed late Tuesday to the defense measure, which could be voted on in the Senate on Wednesday.
No one's clear on which obstructionist filed the amendment, and Mitch McConnell, minority leader, is not returning calls tonight.
Remember, these are the people President Obama expects to be reasonable negotiators over the next few years. This is so beyond the pale.
Update: Lieberman blocks it, according to Politico:
A last-ditch effort by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) to complicate the repeal of the "don't ask, don't tell" policy was blocked Tuesday night after Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) objected, Senate aides said....
"It was a McConnell proposal," a GOP aide confirmed. "There was an attempted to get unanimous consent for it to be included in the defense bill and someone objected."