The Senate GOP voted in unison today to block efforts to take up the Defense Authorization bill, which was to be the vehicle for repealing Don’t Ask Don’t Tell and passing the DREAM Act. No GOP Senator voted to proceed with the bill.

Michael B. Keegan, President of People For the American Way, said:

“Senate Republicans have dedicated their time and energy in the minority to trying to stall government operations in order to prevent progress. Today, they did just that, refusing even to let the Senate proceed to consideration of the DOD authorization bill, thereby stalling passage of a necessary defense bill and blocking Senate action on two fundamentally fair and widely popular policy changes.

“The Don’t Ask Don’t Tell policy has prevented thousands of patriotic Americans from serving their country in the armed forces. The vast majority of Americans oppose the policy, as do the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the commander of U.S. armed forces in Afghanistan—the only thing stopping its repeal is the pro-discrimination Senate GOP. Similarly, the DREAM Act is a fundamentally fair policy supported by the majority of Americans. It’s time for Republicans in Congress to wake up to the values and priorities of the nation they hope to represent.”

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