The cloture vote happened today. It failed, 57-40. We needed 60 votes.
GetEqual, the organization that helped me handcuff myself to the White House fence, released the following statement:
"I have to be honest -- I just vomited a little in my mouth. The Senate just voted on whether to bring the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) up for conversation. Not for passage -- just for conversation. It failed. We all laid everything we could on the line for this bill -- a piece of legislation that would have repealed 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell.' We all know that gay and lesbian Americans are just as patriotic and capable as straight Americans -- but dysfunctional Senate processes, a homophobic Republican Party, and a spineless Democratic Party got in the way of equality once again."
I second that motion. The taste of bile in my mouth is a bit sour.
You know what though? There are people that will continue to fight the prevailing atmosphere of do-nothing government in Washington. There are people that will be only too willing to shackle themselves to their walls and insist on the excellence and advocacy that they were promised.
Those people are Miriam Ben Shalom, Mara Boyd, Dan Choi, and myself, to name a few. You sent us a big "fuck you" today, Senators. You don't get to forget that. We're here to remind you.
See you on the fence.
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