The Other Dream That Was Killed By The Senate Yesterday

With all eyes on Don't Ask Don't Tell being blocked from debate on the Senate floor yesterday, little attention has been paid to The DREAM Act which would have been tacked on to that piece of legislation. It died a partisan death yesterday, too. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nevada) announced last week that he would allow three amendments to the defense bill which sought to repeal Don't Ask Don't Tell. One of those would grant legal status to young immigrants who attend two years of college or join the military–a measure that outraged Republicans like John McCain (who once upon a time supported The DREAM Act) because it could help Reid court Hispanic voters during midterms.

The measure was blocked from debate by a Republican filibuster as kids dressed in caps and gowns watched from the Senate gallery, their dreams going up in partisan smoke.

While DREAM Act advocates say they will continue the fight in November after midterm elections, if Democrats lose big–as they are expected to do–it can be nearly impossible to push a contentious issue during an end-of-the-term lame-duck session. Plus, Republicans have stated they won't vote on the measure until they read the findings of a Pentagon study on Don't Ask Don't Tell which isn't due out until December, leaving little time to revisit the issue before the year's end.

Source: Washington Post