Senate A Step Closer to Voting on DoD, Hate Crimes

The U.S. Senate voted Thursday to end debate on the Department of Defense funding bill, which includes an amendment to expand current hate crime protections to LGBT people. The Senate is expected to vote on final passage of the defense authorization conference report either Thursday evening or Friday.

If the bill is approved, President Barack Obama is expected to sign it into law. He has said on several occasions that he welcomes the opportunity to enact hate crimes legislation as president.