WASHINGTON — The Senate will reconsider next month an end to the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy banning gays from openly serving in uniform, Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said Wednesday.
Reid said that language ending the 17-year-old ban on gays in the military will be part of the annual defense-authorization bill, which sets Pentagon policy and funding.
In a key concession to moderate Republicans seeking a fair debate on the measure, Reid is expected to allow senators from both parties to offer amendments to the bill, aides said. The move could lead to the support of at least some senators who have said they would vote to end the ban if Reid permits them to offer amendments.
The decision was announced during a Capitol Hill meeting Wednesday that gathered Reid, gay-rights leaders and senior White House aides. It comes as the Obama administration intensifies its efforts to ensure the gay ban ends this year.
The administration has faced months of complaints from gay-rights groups that the president is not doing enough to fulfill his campaign pledge on the issue.
Separately, President Barack Obama phoned Senate Armed Services chairman Carl Levin, D-Mich., on Wednesday to reiterate his commitment to keeping the repeal of “don’t ask, don’t tell” in the defense bill, White House aides said. The call came after Levin said Tuesday that he would be open to moving the defense bill forward without it.
The bill still faces significant obstacles. Conservative Republicans could block a vote on it by threatening a filibuster; Reid would then need 60 votes to overcome that threat.
