[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 64 (Wednesday, May 5, 1999)]
[House]
[Page H2642]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




RIVERSIDE NATIONAL CEMETERY, THE IDEAL LOCATION FOR THE NATIONAL MEDAL 
                           OF HONOR MEMORIAL

  (Mr. CALVERT asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. CALVERT. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to praise the 3,417 men and 
women who have placed their lives on the line for their country, have 
taken risks above and beyond the call of duty and, because of their 
extraordinary bravery and action during crisis, have been awarded the 
Medal of Honor.
  Yesterday I introduced the National Medal of Honor Memorial Act. This 
bill designates the memorial being built at the Riverside National 
Cemetery as a national memorial. Since this will be the only publicly 
accessible memorial honoring all 3,417 recipients of the Medal of Honor 
at a single location, I think it is only fitting to identify it as a 
national memorial.
  Riverside National Cemetery is the ideal location for this memorial. 
There are two Medal of Honor recipients buried there; 102 recipients 
are originally from the State of California. At its capacity, the 
cemetery will inter approximately 1,400,000 persons, making it the 
largest national cemetery in the United States.
  Mr. Speaker, I am proud of the strong support from my colleagues. 
Seventy of my colleagues have decided to be original cosponsors of 
this; 100 percent of the California delegation, and the chairman and 
the ranking member of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs. I look 
forward to its passage.

                          ____________________