Don't Ask Don't Tell to be repealled next year?

Congressman Barney Frank has stated that the repeal (at long last) of the military's Don't Ask Don't Tell policy will be included in next year's Military Authorization Act.

This is excellent news. Frank is not known for beating around the bush, so when he says something he believes it.

But the bit that made me really believe this would happen was these lovely words:

Anecdotally, Frank recalled an incident earlier this year when Defense secretary Robert Gates made a statement to reporters suggesting that repeal was still an open question.

“There was a point where Gates said, ‘If we repeal don’t ask, don’t tell,’ and the next day he said, 'When we repeal don’t ask, don’t tell,’” said Frank. “That’s because Rahm called him up. The White House has been consistently committed.”

Every soldier who serves with honor deserve the right to live his or her life with honor - asking our men and women in uniform to sneak around and hide the most basic facts about themselves is just... tawdry. It's not worthy of the dignity that should come with service.