July 05, 2009

"Murphy: [Don't ask, don't tell] Policy must go"

PhillyBurbs.com: "Murphy: Policy must go," by Hilary Bentman, Intelligencer, July 3, 2009:
If you ask Patrick Murphy about "don't ask, don't tell," he'll tell you it must go.

For the Bucks congressman and Iraq War veteran, the policy toward gays in the military is a threat to national security and equality.

Now Murphy will get his chance to lead the charge to repeal the 16-year-old policy.

The primary sponsor of the bill, Ellen Tauscher, a California Democrat, has resigned from Congress to take a position as undersecretary of state for arms control.

It means leadership of the push to repeal "don't ask, don't tell" has fallen into Murphy's lap.

And given the media attention surrounding the issue, it will undoubtedly be one of the more high-profile causes the three-year veteran of Congress has taken on to date. . . .