Political Quotes

“let me thank Senator Lieberman for his authorship of and advocacy for repeal of don't ask, don't tell. I wish to use my time to speak about pieces of legislation. Don't ask, don't tell has been with us now for 17 years. I just pulled a speech I made on the floor 17 years ago. The DREAM Act has been with us for 10 years. So neither of these are surprise bills. Both of these affect large numbers of people in major ways. For many, they are their life. For those who love the military, who see no life outside of the military, don't ask, don't tell is their life. The same for students, the DREAM Act becomes their life. Let me begin with don't ask, don't tell. Seventeen years ago, Senator Boxer introduced an amendment. I spoke to that amendment. We lost by a vote of 33 to 63. Only one-third of the Senate voted to repeal don't ask, don't tell in what was a benign amendment, essentially a consent resolution, but it lost. It lost despite the testimony of legions of military. The time has gone by, 17 long years. Many of us believe the policy is unconstitutional. We believe it does more harm than good. And 17 years later, I am only more certain that is the case. The criteria for serving in the U.S. Armed Forces should be courage, competence, and a willingness to serve. No one should be turned away because of who they are--not because of their race, their sex, or their sexual orientation.”