[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 22 (Friday, February 23, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1299-S1300]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   TRIBUTE TO U.S.S. ``GREENEVILLE''

 Mr. FRIST. Mr. President, on Friday, February 16, I traveled 
to Norfolk, VA, to deliver the keynote address at the commissioning of 
the U.S.S. Greeneville. This naval attack submarine, was named after 
the small city of Greeneville, TN, as a tribute to the rich history of 
the city and its citizens. I ask that my remarks at the commissioning 
be printed in the Record.
  The remarks follow:

                 Tribute to the U.S.S. ``Greeneville''

       On behalf of the citizens of Greeneville--and indeed all 
     the people of the great State of Tennessee--it is an honor to 
     be with you on this proud day.
       Standing here before this great warship--and the officers 
     and crew who will guide her in defense of freedom--we are 
     filled not only with pride in our Nation and our Navy, but 
     also with confidence that we can and will meet any challenge 
     that lies ahead.
       It's been said that each new ship, as she leaves land to 
     find her home in the sea, begins to form a personality that 
     will be hers alone. A personality that encompasses the hopes 
     and dreams of all who built her and all who sail in her. But 
     her personality also takes on the spirit of those in whose 
     honor she is named.
       If that is so, the U.S.S. Greeneville will be imbued with 
     the courage, pride, and patriotism epitomized by Greeneville, 
     and by the thousands of other small towns across our great 
     land whose people are the heart and soul of America.
       She will carry with her the valor of Revolutionary War hero 
     General Nathanael Greene, for whom Greeneville was named. The 
     unflagging integrity of Greeneville's honored son President 
     Andrew Johnson, who helped unite the country after the 
     assassination of Abraham Lincoln. And the pluck of the great 
     Greeneville frontiersman Davy Crockett, who blazed a trail 
     into the wilderness and died defending the Alamo.
       And she will carry the pride of every Greenevillian. From 
     Mayor Love and all our elected officials; to the men and 
     women of the Greeneville Metal Manufacturing Company, a 
     subsidiary of the Newport News shipyards; Admiral Francis 
     McCorckle, former commander of the battleship New Jersey and 
     a resident of Greeneville for all of his 86 years; and so 
     many others--who wrote letters, signed petitions, and lobbied 
     Congress, the Navy, and anyone who would listen, to have this 
     magnificent submarine bear its name.
       While many today advocate a sharply diminished defense in 
     the post-Cold War world, those of you who guard the frontiers 
     of freedom know that the price of peace is eternal vigilance. 
     And it is this vessel--the nuclear attack submarine--that 
     leads the way. It is the sword point of our forward-deployed 
     defenses--the first to respond to threats from potential 
     aggressors, and the first to arrive in times of crisis.
       Whether the mission calls for a continuous presence, as in 
     the Caribbean off of Haiti; covert surveillance and 
     reconnaissance, as in the Adriatic off Bosnia; or special 
     operations forces, such as those we have maintained for years 
     in the Korean theater; submarines provide critical direct and 
     indirect support to our military forces, and are a mainstay 
     of our strategic deterrence platform.
       As General Nathanael Greene's colleague General George 
     Washington put it, ``There is nothing so likely to produce 
     peace as to be well prepared to meet an enemy.'' Or as a more 
     recent commentator put it, ``Today the real test of power is 
     not capacity to make war but capacity to prevent it.''
       That is why our military and civilian leaders must exercise 
     their vigilance with foresight, with one eye always on the 
     future. The price of unpreparedness is too high in American 
     blood and treasure. We do well today to recall when the 
     decision to build the U.S.S. Greeneville was first made, the 
     current commander-in-chief was governor of Arkansas, and I 
     was performing heart transplants in Nashville. And the 
     Greeneville will continue to defend America into the next 
     century, after both of us have returned to our home states.
       While the Russians continue to produce and improve their 
     submarine capabilities, and we face increased proliferation 
     of submarine technology among many other nations, the United 
     States continues to field the finest submarine force in the 
     world. 
     
[[Page S1300]]

       And for that we owe a deep debt of gratitude to the skilled 
     men and women of Newport News, who have built and maintained 
     the subs that have kept us ahead of our adversaries. No 
     nation on earth can match the quality and pride that shows in 
     every weld, fitting, and watertight hatch.
       We also owe a great debt to the submariners who patrol the 
     icy depths of the world's waters in times of peace and in 
     times of war. Their courage--and devotion to duty--are a 
     model of sacrifice worthy of emulation and gratitude from all 
     of us. Americans are a patriotic people who agree with the 
     poet Homer when he writes: ``He serves me most who serves his 
     country best.''
       To every person who played a role in the fitting-out and 
     commissioning of the U.S.S. Greeneville--Thank you.
       To the officers and crew who will sail her into the 
     uncharted waters of the future--Good luck and Godspeed. In 
     every sea, on every mission, the spirit and prayers of the 
     people of Greeneville will go with you.
       They, too, can repeat with you the Midshipman's prayer of 
     the Naval Academy: ``Almighty God, whose way is in the sea, 
     whose paths are in the great waters, whose command is over 
     all and whose love never faileth: . . . Protect those in 
     whose love I live. . . . Guide me with the light of truth and 
     give me the strength to faithfully serve thee, now and 
     always.''
       Finally, to all here today to watch the U.S.S. Greeneville 
     come alive, God bless you, God bless Greeneville, and God 
     bless America.

  (At the request of Mr. Dorgan, the following statement was ordered to 
be printed in the Record.)

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