Barney Frank responded to critics of the repeal of DADT, calling it a distraction that could cost lives. As Frank Rightfully pointed out, “The maintenance of this policy is the distraction.”

'Don't ask, don't tell' passes handily in House of Representatives:

Wednesday’s overwhelming vote for repeal had been expected. In May, the House, by a 40-vote margin, successfully attached repeal language to a broader defense bill that eventually cleared the chamber. Republicans, led by repeal critic Sen. John McCain of Arizona, have twice blocked that bill from heading to the Senate floor, most recently last week.

But gay rights activists cheered the vote, saying the House is aligned with President Barack Obama, Defense Secretary Robert Gates, a majority of troops and most Americans, who all believe openly gay men and women should be allowed to put on the uniform.

A Washington Post/ABC News poll out Wednesday found 77 percent of Americans favor allowing openly gay men and women to serve in the military. The results mirror previous polls that have shown overwhelming public support for ending the “don’t ask” law.

“Momentum is solidly on the side of ending ‘don’t ask, don’t tell,’” Joe Solmonese, president of the Human Rights Campaign, said in a statement. “Now it is up to the Senate to consign this failed and discriminatory law to the dustbin of history.”