Massachusetts Congressman Barney Frank
says Republicans opposed to repeal of “Don't Ask, Don't Tell”
should defend in court the law that bans gay and bisexual troops from
serving openly.
The 70-year-old Frank, one of three
currently serving openly gay representatives, made his comments on
MSNBC's The Last Word with Lawrence O'Donnell.
“I've defended the president saying
he has a duty to defend the constitutionality of laws even if he
doesn't like them, but if the House has voted by majority to repeal
it, the president thinks it should be repealed, the senate majority
is for repealing. If the only thing that saves it is this abuse of
filibuster, then I think any claim that he has to defend it in court
disappears.”
“It has no more, any moral force, and
he ought then, if he can't get this done, and I hope Harry Reid can
get it done as he's trying to do, then let the people who
filibustered try to defend it in court,” the Democrat said. (The
video is embedded in the right panel of this page.)
A judge's order that called the law
unconstitutional forced the military to end enforcement of the policy
for eight days in October. The
Obama administration convinced an appeals court to put the ruling on
hold as the case is appealed.
Frank added that “fear of Tea Party”
was keeping moderate Republicans from supporting repeal.