[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 75 (Monday, May 8, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Page S6234]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                                V-E DAY

  Mr. BINGAMAN. Mr. President, I would like to make a few statements 
about the occasion of May 8, 1995, V-E Day.
  It is rather difficult to think of any event in the life of a nation 
more worthy of commemoration than the end of a world war. Remembrance 
and reflection are crucial if we are to maintain our sense of purpose 
as a nation, and our appreciation of what we value most.
  The service and sacrifice of those who bore the battle at home and 
overseas in the Second World War can never be overstated. It was that 
willingness to give unstintingly not only of effort but also, in many 
cases, their lives, that makes the war years such an extraordinary 
period in our Nation's history.
  Americans who fought the war came from every State in the country, 
and my home State of New Mexico certainly did its part. Our own friends 
and neighbors were heroic in their actions, in their service, and in 
their struggle. If not for their efforts, what would the world be like 
today?
  Franklin Roosevelt, whose death 50 years ago we commemorated on the 
12th of last month, left a monumental legacy for this country. Words 
from a speech that he wrote for delivery on April 13, 1945, had he 
lived to give that speech, still sound out a challenge, one rooted in 
the experience of the war and pinned to his knowledge of his 
countrymen. He wrote for that speech:

       The only limit to our realization of tomorrow will be our 
     doubts of today. Let us move forward with strong and active 
     faith.

  We did that in the Second World War. So we must, every day, move 
forward now from the conflict that threatened to consume the world half 
a century ago. Without the service and the sacrifice that we honor 
today, we would have had no future as a nation. It is our obligation to 
those who secured that future for us to build on it as we approach the 
new century.
  Thank you, Mr. President. I yield the floor.
  Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. DASCHLE. Mr. President, are we still in morning business?
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. We are still in morning business.
  

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