The repeal of "don't ask, don't tell" seems like a done deal. As it has been clear since December 8, when Lisa Murkowski announced she'd vote for a repeal of DADT, all Reid had to do was call up a standalone repeal bill and it was almost certain to pass. Reid's done that, and the vote may come tomorrow.

While Democrats will lose Joe Manchin (W.V.)--and in a new twist, perhaps Kent Conrad (N.D.)--that will still leave them with 56 votes for repeal ( Ron Wyden (Ore.) will be there tomorrow to vote, despite his preparation for prostate cancer surgey). Add in  four Republican senators who have signaled their support for the measure to get to the magic 60: Scott Brown (Mass.), Lisa Murkowski (Ak.), Susan Collins (Maine), and Olympia Snowe (Maine) have announced their support for repeal. Dick Lugar (Ind.) has said he's " sympathetic" to repeal and George Voinovich (Ohio) is a maybe.

While a handful of Senate Republicans are poised to deliver, Senator McCain continue to make the case against that repealing the "don't ask, don't tell" policy will be harmful to the military. Just last night on CNN, he reluctantly revealed that his son, a Marine combat veteran of the Iraq war, opposes the repeal of "don't ask, don't tell." That makes McCain's son typical of most Marines: 67 percent of Marines in combat arms units said that repeal would have a negative impact on their unit's ability to accomplish their mission.

Why are combat troops so much more opposed to repeal of DADT than non-combat troops? One Marine lieutenant offered a succinct explanation of how DADT repeal would hurt unit cohesion:

"My team's effectiveness is directly tied to its cohesiveness. Despite differences, we are so close that we anticipate each other's next move in garrison and in combat. Our ability to do our job is predicated on this kind of relationship. If you were to add any element of sexual competition, inter-unit sexuality, or hesitance in trust, it would unquestionably prevent those bonds from forming or immediately destroy them if introduced."

Sociologically speaking

THE MEMBERS OF THE MILITARY WHO DO MOST OF THE FIGHTING. the environment, the culture, bonding...

It would be irrational and unjust to exclude gays

Like President Obama and most others who support the repeal of "don't ask, don't tell"  67 % of combat troops. ...

overseas

Scott Brown. ...