faint hope for USA politics
I was close to declaring the highly entertaining American political scene dead to me.
A two party system constantly polarized is usually deadlocked.
Deadlocked in a fiscal death spiral.
Yet something happened:
… Eight Republican Senators voted in favor of repeal of DADT (Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell): Scott Brown (Mass.); Richard Burr (NC); Susan Collins (of Maine, and a co-sponsor of the repeal effort); John Ensign (Nevada); Mark Kirk (Illinois); Lisa Murkowski (Alaska); Olympia Snowe (Maine) and George Voinovich of Ohio.
I’m impressed. Nevada. Alaska.
Those are politicians with guts. They could have taken the easy way out. As McCain did:
McCain’s vigorous opposition to the DADT repeal is not the first time he’s found himself swimming against the tide of history. As a congressman in 1983, he voted against the creation of a federal holiday honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. — a vote he later regretted.
“On the Martin Luther King issue, we all learn, OK? We all learn,” he told NBC in 1999, discussing his vote. “I will admit to learning, and I hope that the people that I represent appreciate that, too. I voted in 1983 against the recognition of Martin Luther King….I regret that vote.” …
Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell was not the most important issue facing the USA.
This was the right decision. Let’s hope they can move forward with more good decisions, rather than continue to stagnate.
[...] On a serious note, shout out for those politicians who voted to repeal Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell. Especially the Republicans with the guts to do the right thing. [...]
The 12 Gays of Christmas — Gymnastics Coaching.com
December 25, 2010 at 5:05 am
WHOAAAH…. Richard Burr voted to repeal DADT?
I’m utterly shocked. He’s one of my senators, and he’s always struck me as a complete party hack. I am amazed that he actually had the guts to vote against the rest of the republican party.
Geoffrey Taucer
December 28, 2010 at 8:42 pm