Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid has
returned gay rights activist Lt. Dan Choi's West Point ring, five
months after promising he'd return it after repeal of “Don't Ask,
Don't Tell.”
Choi was honorably discharge from the
military for announcing more than a year ago on MSNBC's The Rachel
Maddow Show that he's gay.
Before a question and answer session at
Netroots Nation, the nation's largest gathering of liberal bloggers,
the discussion moderator handed Reid Choi's West Point ring as a
gift, along with his discharge paperwork.
Reid said he could not accept the ring
because Choi had “earned his ring.”
Choi jumped onto the stage to give Reid
a hug as the audience urged the majority leader to keep the ring
until the law is repealed.
Reid gave in, saying: “When the
bill's signed, I'll keep it safely and then give it back to him.”
The audience cheered and gave Reid a
standing ovation. (The video is embedded in the right panel of this
page.)
After
President Barack Obama on Wednesday signed into law a bill that
repeals the military's ban on open gay service, Reid tweeted a
photo of himself returning the ring to Choi.
“Five months after I promised to
repeal #DADT, I'm so happy to give back this West Point ring to
@ltdanchoi,” Reid messaged.
Choi responded via Twitter: “The next
time I get a ring from a man, I expect it to be for full, equal
American marriage.”
Earlier,
Reid tweeted, “#DADT on it's way to becoming history,” to pop
singer Lady Gaga, also a repeal backer.