BREAKING: Senate Republicans block repeal of DADT

[cinyc]

In that case, why did Scott Brown vote against invoking cloture, when he has previously said he will support the repeal of DADT?

I don't see why Reid is trying to repeal DADT with this bill.  If he did it on its own, simply amending 10 U.S.C. § 654, I think it'd easily pass.

Republicans will not allow any bills to come to the Senate floor in the lame duck session until the Senate passes a tax bill and continuing resolution to fund the government.  Collins seems to have forgotten this, but it didn't matter.  Given who will control the House next year, it is a very good strategy for Republicans - running out the clock on the Democratic agenda, largely (but not exclusively) featuring wish list of goodies for their special interest groups that don't stand a chance of passing the House next year. 

Democrats don't like this and have resorted to call Republicans and the President names, but elections have consequences.

[cinyc]

Republicans will not allow any bills to come to the Senate floor in the lame duck session until the Senate passes a tax bill and continuing resolution to fund the government.

That I disagree with.  It's not like we need more debate to fix the tax bill... the GOP and Dem heads just need to sit down and hammer out an agreement.  Unless they plan on being on the floor debating the bill, let's move on to other issues.  That's the entire reason there's a dual track for legislation.

I gotta say... I disagree with the GOP on this one.  Although, their other reasons (amendments and time) I see as valid.

House Democrats voted to oppose the tax bill today.   (Or since "hostage taking" seems to be the over-the-top political rhetoric of the day, should we call that holding tax cuts for the poor hostage to engage in class warfare?)  It is not a done deal.  No done deal.  No votes on anything else - that's the Republican position.  The side benefit of that is that some liberal agenda items that won't see the light of day in a divided Congress won't get passed if there is no time.  The clock is ticking.

It's a win-win for Republicans.  Not so much for Democrats, who have been used to getting their own way for the past 2 years.

[cinyc]

Many members of this forum on both sides of the issue place much greater importance on gay issues than the general public.  In reality, the repeal of DADT ranks very low on most Americans' list of priorities.  Blocking repeal simply doesn't have the negative political effects that many Atlasians think it does.