Aubrey Sarvis, a leader in the movement
to repeal “Don't Ask, Don't Tell,” says the votes to break
Senator John McCain's threatened DADT repeal filibuster on Tuesday
are not there.
Sarvis, the executive director of the
Servicemembers Legal Defense Network, the largest group lobbying for
repeal of the 1993 law that forbids gay troops from serving openly,
says the votes to overcome a threatened Republican filibuster on
repeal in the Senate have yet to materialize.
McCain, a Republican from Arizona, has
led the effort to block passage of the annual Defense Authorization
Act because the controversial repeal amendment has been attached to
it. House members approved a similar measure in May.
“The votes to break McCain's
filibuster are not there,” Sarvis said in a statement. “We need
Senators [Olympia] Snowe and [Susan] Collins on board; they're key to
us breaking the filibuster.”
“With the vote less than 48 hours
away, we need everyone supporting repeal to call the Senate,” he
added.
Sarvis is hoping a
Monday rally in Maine featuring pop singer Lady Gaga will help
convince Senators Snowe and Collins, who are both Republican and
represent Maine, to support repeal of the law.
“Like Lady Gaga, all New England
senators, indeed all 100 senators, Democrats and Republicans, need to
engage in a real debate on this issue, and not just posture and spin
this week over procedure and Senate rules,” Sarvis said.