[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 161 (Monday, December 15, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E2408-E2409]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




               ADDRESS OF LT. GEN. ROGER G. THOMPSON, JR.

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. JOHN JOSEPH MOAKLEY

                            of massachusetts

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, November 13, 1997

  Mr. MOAKLEY. Mr. Speaker, as the sponsor of House Concurrent 
Resolution 65, I rise today to bring to my colleagues attention the 
U.S. military's belief in a strong domestic maritime industry, as well 
affirmed in a speech last month before the national convention of the 
Propeller Club by Lt. Gen. Roger Thompson, the deputy commander in 
chief of the U.S. Transportation Command.
  In his remarks, General Thompson reaffirmed support for the Jones Act 
as a ``proven performer that supported both our nation's military 
security and its economic soundness,'' further commenting that the 
cabotage law ``provides its root structure for our strategic 
transoceanic sealift capabilities.'' In recognizing the valuable 
insurance the Jones Act fleet presents to the Defense Department, 
General Thompson noted that 75 percent of ocean going Jones Act vessels 
of over 1,000 gross tons are militarily useful and some 89,000 domestic 
mariners are qualified to crew the Government's Ready Reserve Force.
  With your approval, Mr. Speaker, I wish to place the full text of his 
address into the Congressional Record.

               Remarks by Lt. Gen. Roger G. Thompson, Jr.

       It's a pleasure to be here today . . . Admiral Siler, Mr. 
     Joseph, Mr. Myrick, Mr. Bazemore, ladies and gentlemen--no . 
     . . let me make that ``our friends in the Propeller Club of 
     the United States . . . because today we are indeed, all 
     among friends.
       It's a wonderful opportunity to be here today with all of 
     you--here in the magnificent city of Savannah. Certainly it's 
     a fitting place for this conclave. It is at the same time 
     rooted deeply in the rich history of our South Atlantic coast 
     and its equally rich maritime traditions; currently of 
     course, a thriving port both for commercial and military 
     activity; and a strategic shipping and logistics location 
     poised to continue its critical economic and military 
     importance unhesitatingly into the 21st century.
       I have a particular relationship with Savannah, because in 
     the mid 80s I was stationed in Charleston, SC, in the 
     Military Traffic Management Command, and I was the port 
     commander and our responsibilities were for the entire 
     Southeast coast, so all Department of Defense Cargo that 
     moved through the Southeastern ports was my responsibility. 
     And I spent a lot of hours down on the waterfront at both 
     ocean terminals and of course, the city, where we loaded day 
     and night some ships that were deploying around the world our 
     combat ships for various missions, mostly, I thank goodness, 
     for exercises as opposed to major crises. So I have a lot of 
     days and nights in the Savannah waterfront area.
       So it is a pleasure for me to be here today to represent 
     the United States Transportation Command.
       A brief word about the Transportation Command . . . it is a 
     joint command, that is part of the Department of Defense. And 
     as a joint command it has three components.
       There is the Military Traffic Management Command that is 
     primarily in charge of surface transportation and intermodal 
     transportation . . . and there is Air Mobility Command, which 
     is of course just what the name implies. It provides our 
     airlift, and makes arrangements not only with organic 
     airlift, but also with commercial aircraft . . . and finally 
     there is the Military Sealift Command, with which I'm sure 
     you are very familiar, which is responsible for our over 
     ocean transportation. So that is a quick snap shot of the 
     United States Transportation Command's organization. In total 
     numbers, with active military, civilian and reserve, we have 
     about 163,000 folks who are responsible for orchestrating the 
     Defense Transportation System.
       I need to tell you, that since my arrival some six weeks 
     ago at USTRANSCOM, my primarily Army background--although it 
     has included extensive port operations and other involvement 
     with maritime operations--has broadened tremendously. Of 
     course, much of what we do in the military is underpinned by 
     slanguage and jargon--and among other skills, I've been 
     learning additional seagoing terminology! So this story kind 
     of tells how I am learning, and you can be the judge of 
     whether I am learning well, or not.
       I was told in my first days at TRANSCOM about a wizened 
     World War II merchant skipper. He was renowned not just for 
     open ocean navigation acumen but especially for his 
     restricted harbor situation maneuvering skills. In fact, he 
     seldom used tugs. But every morning when he arrived on the 
     bridge, he unlocked a drawer, peered into it quickly, 
     concentrated, shut the drawer and then locked it.
       As luck would have it, after navigating the worlds oceans 
     for decades, dodging enemy subs and bombers, the aging 
     mariner passed away quietly in his bunk. When the boatswain 
     found him in the morning, although somewhat hesitant, he 
     quickly grabbed the now deceased captain's keys and rushed to 
     the bridge. Breathlessly opening the lock and peering into 
     the drawer, he saw a yellowed, frazzled, neatly lettered: 
     ``Port is Left . . . Starboard is Right.'' So I just want you 
     to know I'm learning.
       So I know my left from right now, and I've also learned a 
     little about where the word ``posh'' came from. When I was 
     growing up I thought the word ``posh'' meant elegant. I 
     thought I'd learned my lessons, but wrong . . . it's really a 
     nautical term and derives the sea trade routes between Great 
     Britain and its former Indian subcontinent colonies. In the 
     days before air conditioning, transiting the Mediterranean in 
     the summer, and then the Indian Ocean near the equator, one 
     wanted to be on the north, or left side of the ship, deriving 
     such comfort from the shade as might be possible.
       On the return voyage--of course--you wanted again to be on 
     the north, or this time, the starboard side. Thus, using 
     England as a point of reference, the best cabins were on the 
     Port side Outbound, and to the Starboard side coming Home--
     Port Outbound . . . Starboard Home . . . P-O-S-H . .  posh. 
     So I'm learning all kinds of things in my new job.
       But I'd like now to shift my course, and talk about the 
     subject of this gathering in Savannah--America's Maritime 
     Lifeline--The Jones Act.
       The purpose that has been most commonly ascribed to the 
     Jones Act is of course, the requirement that domestic 
     waterborne commerce--shipping between two points in our 
     nation--shall be conducted in U.S.-crewed and flagged 
     vessels.
       Frankly, if that's as far as it went, we at USTRANSCOM 
     probably would not be terribly concerned with its future. We 
     see little prospect of any need to transport our 3rd Armored 
     Division from Beaumont to Boston. We sincerely hope that the 
     unpleasantness some 130 years ago is indeed behind us 
     forever.
       And so if I may draw an analogy, if the Jones Act was a 
     tree, the domestic maritime shipment issue would be a trunk--
     a main structure. But the roots that support that trunk also 
     support another trunk--the strategic sealift that gives our 
     nation much of its capability to project power overseas.
       The Jones Act, conceived some 80 years ago as a measure to 
     ensure our domestic maritime base, just as assuredly provides 
     its root structure for our strategic transoceanic sealift 
     capabilities. The Jones Act is truly a ``win-win package'' 
     for our country.
       Before I more closely examine the strategic sealift 
     ramifications of the Jones Act, I might note that this is not 
     an exclusive piece of protectionist legislation to favor our 
     nation, nor is it unlike laws that support other forms of 
     commercial road, rail and air transportation in the United 
     States. On the contrary, cabotage laws--derived from the 
     French word, Caboter--which means to sail along the coast or 
     ``by the capes''--are in various forms, the laws of some 
     56 nations around the world.
       Now I'd like to state for the record, that the domestic 
     maritime industry is not some small potatoes special interest 
     group.
       Our domestic maritime industry employs some 124,000 
     taxpayers, either serving in the vessels or in shipbuilding, 
     repair and of course many other related fields, with which 
     you all are very familiar.
       The private investment in U.S.-flag domestic shipping 
     investment exceeds $26 billion for some 44,000 vessels and 
     barges.
       Domestic shipping moves 30% of United States' cargo at a 
     cost of less than 2% of our nation's total freight bill.
       Having clearly defined left from right, port from 
     starboard--just what do our nation's military, strategic 
     sealift interests derive from this piece of domestic 
     legislation? The question is--ladies and gentleman--Where's 
     the ``beef'' for USTRANSCOM?
       Surely it has not in recent history been the actual 
     military employment of vessels. During Operations desert 
     Shield and Desert Storm, only 2 of 22 militarily useful dry 
     cargo vessels and 6 of 99 Jones Act Tankers were employed. 
     Although I might add, these 6 tankers delivered more than 20% 
     of U.S. tanker petroleum products deliveries in the course of 
     40 voyages. But we should never forget the tremendous 
     potential here. We should remember that 75% of ocean going 
     Jones Act vessels of over 1,000 gross tons are militarily 
     useful, as defined by Department of Defense. They in 
     themselves are valuable insurance.
       But these vessels don't have to sail to foreign ports to 
     serve our nation, and you know that. Great Lakes ships and 
     inland river barges are vital conduits that move cargoes from 
     the interior of our nation to coastal ports for shipment 
     overseas. And throughout, they contribute to and support our 
     great nation's economy.
       Perhaps the most critical contribution of the Jones Act to 
     Desert Shield-Desert Storm activity was the crewmembers--the 
     American merchant mariners--who sailed our Ready Reserve 
     Force of Vessels in harm's way, delivering the tracked and 
     wheeled vehicles, the sustaining supplies, that enabled the 
     United States and its coalition partners

[[Page E2409]]

     to pulverize Iraq in a 30-day war and then roll over it in a 
     100 hour ground war.
       The Iraqis threatened to mine the seas. The U.S. merchant 
     mariners sailed into the theater at best speed.
       The Iraqis threatened to use chemical weapons. What did the 
     U.S. mariners do? They ignored the threats and delivered 
     their cargoes anyhow.
       And when the war was concluded victoriously--and we had 
     lots and lots of stuff left over there--and by the way, lots 
     of it was ammunition--U.S. merchant mariners brought the 
     equipment and supplies home.
       Of the citizen mariners who crew Jones Act Vessels, some 
     8,000 are qualified to crew the government's fleet of Ready 
     Reserve Force--or RRF--vessels in time of national need. 
     These 90-plus RRF vessels--designed or modified to carry the 
     outsized and heavy equipment and cargoes that characterize 
     our military force--are core elements of our nation's 
     strategic sealift capabilities.
       More recently mariners who work domestic vessels--and in 
     the case of our mission in Haiti, the vessels themselves--
     have played significant roles. When we activated Ready 
     Reserve Force ships to support Operation JOINT ENDEAVOR in 
     Bosnia, fully 70% of the crews that answered the call had 
     been employed in our domestic fleet--Jones Act vessels--
     during the five years between the Gulf conflict and 
     operations in Bosnia.
       Next, the Jones Act is important to the United States 
     military because it supports a U.S. shipbuilding capability 
     that has turned a corner in recent years, with tonnage under 
     construction increasing to the level that elevates this 
     country from 22nd in the world to 8th.
       And the act supports a maritime repair and maintenance 
     capability that might be critical if we were to find 
     ourselves in a protracted conflict and be obliged--as we have 
     been in the past--to repair damaged or worn sealift assets.
       Some folks have called the Jones Act a legislative life-
     support system for an aging, dying creature. I would like to 
     note that over the past three decades:
       America's domestic fleet--vessels exceeding 1,000 tons 
     gross weight tonnage--doubled in numbers from 1965 to 95
       . . . it tripled productivity during that same period, and
       . . . reached the one billion ton cargo threshold for the 
     first time in 1995.
       Now I guess I've got to ask you--and myself at the same 
     time--do we hear any death rattles in those statistics. I 
     certainly don't hear any.
       And Jones Act vessels are part of our newest initiative--
     VISA--the Voluntary Intermodal Sealift Agreement, implemented 
     only this year following its development with MARAD.
       Many of you here are members of organizations which are 
     participating in the ground-breaking initiative . . . and we 
     want to thank you for your support.
       VISA is very similar to the highly successful Civil Reserve 
     Air Fleet--or CRAF--that has served our nation's military 
     airlift needs so well.
       VISA--like the Jones Act--is another win-win construct, DOD 
     gains capacity--access actually to capacity--intermodal 
     capacity--vice specific hulls. Contracts are being pre-
     negotiated: we will know what we will have to pay; carriers 
     will know what they will get.
       And this is a very important point, we are planning jointly 
     with our industry partners. And I might add on the side, that 
     this planning has received national recognition and the 
     people that have been part of this planning group for the 
     last two years, have been recent recipients of the hammer 
     award. This joint planning means industry representatives--
     that have security clearances--sit with us as we develop war 
     plans. Now that's unprecedented. And their inputs and 
     suggestions are proving extraordinarily valuable to us. So we 
     are very excited about that.
       Industry is learning ahead of time what we will need, which 
     in turn enables them to project accurately and protect their 
     market share. We are not just getting access to specific 
     ships, as I mentioned a minute ago, we are getting access to 
     worldwide intermodal system capacity and expertise. And as 
     you know, by watching what has been going on in the 
     intermodal world, this has become much much more important 
     than even in the past.
       I know of few military people--and virtually none who have 
     experienced it--who would seek the opportunity for military 
     confrontation or combat. But as you know, the odds and 
     history don't offer much hope that total peace will break out 
     anytime soon or for long.
       Air lift is swift--to be sure. It can move personnel and 
     high priority cargo around the world in only hours. Along 
     with long-range air strikes. It gives us awesome halting 
     power to stop an aggressor's advance. But to mount and 
     sustain a counter attack and drive to victory--as far as we 
     can see into the future--still will require strategic 
     sealift.
       Sealift will move the bulk of the unit equipment--what are 
     we talking about?--the tanks, artillery and trucks--that will 
     ultimately uproot an aggressor and defeat him. And it will 
     deliver the sustaining supplies to carry the day. Fully 90 to 
     95% of all war materials and supplies will be delivered by 
     sealift.
       So for the reasons cited--the Jones Act is an important 
     element supporting that requirement. It provides a very 
     important root system that sustains our sealift capability.
       In conclusion, the Jones Act is a proven performer that 
     supports both our nation's military security and its economic 
     soundness.
       I'd like to thank you for inviting me here today. And I 
     certainly wish you all the best of success with this session 
     that you are having here, but more importantly I wish you 
     continued success in your fields so we can continue making 
     our great nation even greater and even stronger.

     

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