What's next for DADT?

First, Rachel Maddow rips apart the GOP excuses for Tuesday's epic fail senate vote against the "don't ask, don't tell" repeal:

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Later, Maddow outlines the three best options for moving forward on DADT:

1. another Senate attempt during the "lame duck" session after the mid-term election,
2. an executive order from the president ending the policy (or at least stopping the discharges until the Pentagon removes the policy), and/or
3. The Department of Justice can choose not to appeal the recent court decision that DADT is unconstitutional.

The "don't appeal" strategy is gaining more support now that the senate repeal is on hold. A New York Times editorial on DADT notes:

President Obama, the House and a majority of senators clearly support an end to "don't ask, don't tell," but that, of course, is insufficient in the upside-down world of today's Senate, where 40 members can block anything.

[snip]

If the military's unjust policy is not repealed in the lame-duck session, there is another way out. The Obama administration can choose not to appeal Judge Phillips's ruling that the policy is unconstitutional, and simply stop ejecting soldiers.

U.S. district court judge Virginia Phillips ruled the 17-year-old law unconstitutional on September 9. The plaintiffs, the Log Cabin Republicans, filed for an end to the enforcement of DADT, and the Department of Justice is scheduled to respond with their own proposal on Thursday.

Democrats in the U.S. House, led by the three openly gay members - Barney Frank (D-MA), Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), and Jared Polis (D-CO) - wrote a letter to Pres. Obama urging him not to appeal the federal court decision:

We consider this matter a top priority to our service members, the American people and the security of the United States. We acknowledge and appreciate your support and hope that together we can end this dishonorable policy once and for all. We hope that you, as the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Services, will take this opportunity to restore integrity to our military and decline to appeal Judge Phillips' ruling.

Americablog also points out:

If DOJ pursues an appeal, Obama's administration will be defending the constitutionality of DADT and DOMA in court -- right smack in the middle of his reelection campaign.

And they think the approval ratings are low now! Stay tuned for the DOJ's response.