[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 18 (Monday, January 30, 1995)]
[House]
[Pages H848-H849]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1420
                             SPECIAL ORDERS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Boehner). Under the Speaker's announced 
policy of January 4, 1995, and under a previous order of the House, the 
following Members will be recognized for 5 minutes each.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Mississippi [Mr. Montgomery] is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Mr. MONTGOMERY. Mr. Speaker, our colleague, Ike Skelton, is the 
recipient of the 1995 Minuteman of the Year Award from the Reserve 
Officers Association. He was honored this past week at the ROA's 
midwinter meeting in Washington.
  I want to share with my colleagues the speech Ike made in accepting 
this deserving award.
                 Comments of Representative Ike Skelton

       There are magic, memorable moments within one's life, and 
     being here with you this evening is truly one of them. I have 
     neither the mastery of words nor the eloquence of diction to 
     express my gratitude on receiving this honor. It is a 
     particular thrill to join the ranks of colleagues such as 
     Greg Laughlin, Daniel Inouye, Jack Murtha, Sam Nunn, Sonny 
     Montgomery, Strom Thurmond, and others who have received this 
     award.
       Through the years, I have had many friends among the 
     Reserves, particularly those from Missouri, such as Capt. 
     Mike Nolan. I feel a close kinship to those present.
       I am indeed proud of the Reserve forces of our country. 
     From the battle at Lexington, MA in 1775 to the Persian Gulf 
     in 1991, where Bronze Star recipient Jim Ahrens from 
     Lexington, MO served with distinction, reservists have been 
     prepared and ready to heed our country's call to arms.
       As we speak, there are over 13,000 American reservists 
     serving in 34 countries, including 800 in Operation Uphold 
     Democracy in Haiti; over 600 with Operation Deny Flight in 
     Bosnia; and over 1,500 reservists supporting counter-drug 
     operations along our borders.
       This past November, two of my colleagues--Chet Edwards and 
     Jim Chapman of Texas--and I visited NATO headquarters in 
     Brussels, where we were told by Brig. Gen. John Dalleger, 
     ``If we didn't have the Guard and Reserve `to spell us', we 
     couldn't do our mission over the long haul.'' At the Aviano 
     Air Base in Italy, whose mission is Operation Deny Flight, 
     Col. Dick Brenner said, ``We fly about 600 sorties a month. 
     And Reserve air units are completely integral to our flight 
     operations. They are darn good pilots, and I am proud to fly 
     with them.'' In Zagreb, Croatia, where the U.S. Navy operates 
     the field hospital, Col. Jack Fitzgerald of the UNPROFOR 
     forces told us, ``We operate a hospital for the United 
     Nations protection force. Reservists contribute special 
     skills we need to support the operation. They come from 
     everywhere in the United States--Virginia, Missouri, Texas--
     everywhere.'' And it was an Army Reserve helicopter unit 
     placing huge boulders along the Missouri River which 
     successfully kept that river from cutting a new channel 
     during the flood of 1993. In short, the Reserve forces of our 
     country live up to the finest traditions of the words, 
     ``citizen soldiers.''
       Unfortunately, those who wear the uniform are not always 
     appreciated. Historically, the gratitude of the public does 
     not always extend to those whose duty it is to defend them. 
     This is reflected by the words from Rudyard Kipling's 1890 
     poem ``Tommy:''

     Then it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, and ``Tommy, 'ow's yer 
           soul?''
     But it's ``Thin red line of 'eroes'' when the drums begin to 
           roll--

       But appreciation or not, I know full well those who wear 
     the American uniform will always do their duty.
       Congressmen Edwards and Chapman and I also visited the 
     Flanders Field American Cemetery in Waregram, Belgium. The 
     village mayor came out to thank us for the American efforts 
     on behalf of his country in two World Wars. We laid a wreath 
     in memory of those 368 Americans who were killed in World War 
     I. All of the men buried in that cemetery were soldiers of 
     three National Guard divisions and one Army Reserve division. 
     Citizen soldiers all. Four were from Missouri, and sadly, the 
     crosses note that seven were killed in combat on November 11, 
     1918, just hours before the armistice.
       During the wreath laying ceremony, a member of the cemetery 
     staff read the poem that came out of that war, titled ``In 
     Flanders Fields.'' In the poem is the phrase ``to you from 
     failing hands we throw the torch, be yours to hold it high.'' 
     The author, prophetically, was killed in battle later in the 
     war, and through the poem spoke to succeeding generations of 
     those who value freedom.
       The memory of our visit to that American cemetery in 
     Flanders shall long remain with me.
       This is a dangerous world in which we live. The long 
     twilight struggle, the bitter contest against Communist 
     expansion, has come to an end. With the fall of the Berlin 
     Wall, and the implosion of the Soviet Union, a certain 
     euphoria swept across our land, only to be replaced with the 
     reality of Saddam Hussein and others whose values and designs 
     are not the same as ours.
       Few realize that during 1994, this country came close to 
     armed conflict three times--in North Korea, Haiti, and 
     Kuwait. The first two were diffused by the diplomacy of 
     former President Jimmy Carter, and one was blocked by 
     American forces being rushed to the Middle East once again. 
     Conflicts and threats rage throughout the globe, and those 
     involving our vital interests are of concern not only to 
     those who wear American uniforms, but to every citizen of the 
     United States.
       Our country, historically, has made the mistake of 
     disarming after every major conflict. This fact was decried 
     by an Army major in 1923, when he noted ``The regular cycle 
     in the doing and undoing of measures for the national 
     defense.'' He added, ``We start in the making of adequate 
     provisions and then turn abruptly in the opposite direction 
     and abolish what has just been done.'' Maj. George C. 
     Marshall's words are as applicable to today's military 
     downsizing as they were 72 years ago.
       We should not allow the post-cold-war era to be one where 
     we slash our national security as we have done heretofore in 
     our history. We should learn from the past, and heed the 
     warning of General Marshall.
       The protection of freedom and American vital interests is 
     no small thing. A ready and able military is our national 
     defense insurance policy. In time of conflict, it allows us 
     to be successful. It gives strength to our international 
     diplomacy. In other times, it prevents the clash of arms. 
     Every American should understand these basic truths regarding 
     national security.
       In 1935, Winston Churchill warned his countrymen that, 
     ``wars come very suddenly.'' This warning is worth keeping in 
     mind in 1995. In other words, the ordeal of the 20th century 
     is not over.
       In 1939, we were surprised by the signing of the non-
     aggression pact between the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany. 
     The consequences were horrific.
       In 1941, we were surprised by the attack of the Empire of 
     Japan on United States naval forces at Pearl Harbor.
       In 1946, we were surprised by the Iron Curtain and the cold 
     war.
       In 1950, we were surprised by the attack of North Korea 
     against the South.
       In 1961, we were surprised when the Berlin Wall went up.
       In 1962, we were surprised when Khrushchev put missiles in 
     Cuba.
       In 1968, we were surprised by the Tet offensive by the 
     North Vietnamese.
       In 1979, we were surprised by the fall of the Shah of Iran.
       In 1980, we were surprised by the attack of Iraq against 
     Iran.
       In 1990, we were surprised by the attack and occupation of 
     Kuwait by Iraq.
       And just last fall, we were surprised by the sudden 
     movement of Iraq forces toward Kuwait.
       Truly, this is an uncertain world. Unpredictable, like the 
     patterns we see in the turning of a child's kaleidoscope. 
     There are those in this audience who will once again hear the 
     rattle of musketry, the crash of artillery, the roar of the 
     jet engine, and the klaxon call to battle stations. No one 
     seeks this, but until mankind finds a better way to solve 
     disputes and conflicts, this prediction will come to pass.
       The late President Harry Truman, who, coincidentally had 
     both Army National Guard and Reserve careers, had a sign on 
     his desk that stated, ``the buck stops here.'' The 
     Constitution states, without any further explanation, that 
     the President is the Commander in Chief of our military 
     forces. By contrast, that document sets forth in detail in 
     article one, section eight the duties of the Congress, as 
     representatives of the American people, to raise and maintain 
     the military, and set the regulations that govern it.
       Thus, the same could be said of Congress regarding our 
     national security duties, ``the 
     [[Page H849]] buck stops here.'' It is the job of the 
     Congress to make sure that the Nation's insurance policy is 
     paid in full and that we have an adequate, fully trained 
     properly educated, well-equipped, and highly motivated 
     military.
       This Congress should heed the necessity to fully fund the 
     Bottom-Up Review, which is designed to successfully fight two 
     major regional conflicts nearly simultaneously; to maintain a 
     high level of readiness; to give adequate pay raises to 
     uniformed personnel; to allow our forces to have the quality 
     of life they so well deserve; and to have continued 
     modernization of equipment and weapons systems.
       I say to you, Members of this distinguished organization: 
     Your visits to Capitol Hill, and communications with Members 
     of Congress, are extremely important. Never underestimate the 
     impact of your presence as Congress debates our national 
     defense policy. When the history of this new post-cold-war 
     era is written, I hope the history books will say that the 
     Americans in uniform stood tall and had the strong support of 
     the Congress of the United States.
       Let me share with you a magic, memorable moment from 
     yesteryear. I remember it so clearly. I was 9 years of age, 
     attending the fifth grade at Central School in Lexington. My 
     father, a veteran of the First World War, trial lawyer, and 
     well-known orator in Lafayette County, was invited to speak 
     at the Armistice Day ceremonies at the Odessa High School, 
     just a few miles from Lexington. That was November 11, 1941. 
     He took me from my class and we drove to the Odessa High 
     School, where I sat in the back of the student body, 
     listening and watching the Armistice Day program. On the 
     stage, students portraying soldiers were dressed in World War 
     uniforms, and the beating of a bass drum simulated artillery 
     fire.
       Then my father gave his speech. He told of the freedoms of 
     America, and how those in uniform had defended our country 
     through the years. He also stated that there were those in 
     that audience who might well have to defend our freedoms once 
     again. How prophetic he was, for less than a month later, the 
     Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor, and our Nation was engulfed 
     in what became known as World War II. Two young men from that 
     Odessa graduating class of May, 1942 were killed in action.
       My father concluded his speech to the student body by 
     reciting--

     ``In Flanders Fields the poppies blow
     Between the crosses, row on row,
     That mark our place; and in the sky
     The larks, still bravely singing, fly
     Scarce heard amid the guns below.

     ``We are the dead. Short days ago
     We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
     Loved and were loved, and now we lie,
     In Flanders Fields.

     ``Take up our quarrel with the foe:
     To you from failing hands we throw
     The torch; be yours to hold it high.
     If ye break faith with us who die
     We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
     In Flanders Fields.''

       Let those inscriptions on the crosses of Flanders Field be 
     more than forgotten names. Let those men be remembered for 
     their patriotism, courage, and dedication. Let those citizen 
     soldiers who lie there ever cause us to remember that we, in 
     our day and time, have the duty to hold high the touch of 
     freedom in this dangerous and unstable world.
       Thank you, and God bless you.

                          ____________________