Hallelujah! The House of Representatives has just passed H.R. 6520, the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010," by a vote of 250-175.
And now it's on to the Senate where, thanks to a neat little trick that had Republicans -- who mostly complained about procedure rather than trumpeting their bigotry during the floor debate -- whining:
For procedural reasons aimed at circumnavigating some of the blocking efforts by Republicans in the Senate, the Democrats needed a legislative vehicle that the majority leader, Harry Reid of Nevada, could call up without a round of votes that could take up the better part of a week.
And using the small business measure as a legislative “shell” does the trick. The language authorizing repeal of “don’t ask, don’t tell” is substituted for the language in the small business bill. And presuming it is approved by the House, it can be returned to the Senate as a privileged message making it easier for Mr. Reid to call it up.
... this can hopefully be fast-tracked in the Senate (and yes, I just used the words "fast" and "Senate" in the same sentence).