Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) reflected Saturday on his vote on the repeal of the military's "don't ask, don't tell" policy, saying he was "wrong" to vote "no."
In December 2010, Manchin broke with Democrats and cast a vote against a procedural motion to advance "don't ask, don't tell" repeal legislation. When the Senate voted to repeal the "don't ask, don't tell" policy later that month, Manchin skipped the vote to attend a "holiday gathering."
"That was the wrong vote," Manchin said at a Saturday breakfast hosted by National Journal and The Atlantic, which also featured MSNBC's Rachel Maddow. "Today I would vote the other way."
Kerry Eleveld, formerly of The Advocate, and BuzzFeed's John Stanton tweeted from the breakfast:
Explaining his stance in December 2010, Manchin said he voted "no" because of the timing of the repeal.
“I do not support its repeal at this time,” Manchin said. “I would like to make clear that my concern is not with the idea of repealing DADT, but rather an issue of timing.”
“My concerns, as highlighted in the recent defense survey and through the testimony of the service chiefs, are with the effect implementation of the repeal would have on our front line combat troops at this time,” he said.
Manchin is currently one of three Democrats in the U.S. Senate who have not backed gay marriage.
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