'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' Set For Key Vote Next Week

by Liz Halloran for NPR

The move to repeal a 17-year-old law barring openly gay Americans from serving in the military faces a crucial test Tuesday when senators are scheduled to vote on the annual defense authorization bill, which includes a provision to end the practice.

Its passage remains uncertain as the day approaches.

Republican senators, led by ranking Armed Services Committee member John McCain of Arizona, have threatened to block passage of the bill if the repeal language and an immigration-related amendment remain in the $726 billion measure.

The immigration measure, known as the "DREAM Act," would allow undocumented immigrant students who have been in the U.S. since childhood to enlist in the military, go to college and earn citizenship.

McCain, in a speech from the Senate floor this week, accused Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of scheduling the vote in advance of November's election to promote the Democrats' social agenda, turning debate on the annual Defense Department funding bill into a "political football."

Repeal advocates, meanwhile, have been scrambling to line up the 60 votes needed to stymie GOP efforts to block the showdown vote on the law, known as "don't ask, don't tell.”

The House in May endorsed repeal of the measure in its defense authorization bill.