[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 98 (Tuesday, July 25, 2000)]
[House]
[Pages H6791-H6792]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
{time} 1100
RECOGNIZING HEROES PLAZA IN CITY OF PUEBLO, COLORADO, AS HONORING
RECIPIENTS OF MEDAL OF HONOR
Mr. STUMP. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to
the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 351) recognizing Heroes Plaza
in the City of Pueblo, Colorado, as honoring recipients of the Medal of
Honor.
The Clerk read as follows:
H. Con. Res. 351
Whereas the Medal of Honor was established by Congress in
1862 and is the highest military declaration bestowed by the
Nation;
Whereas the criteria for receiving the Medal of Honor are
extraordinarily stringent, requiring that an individual,
while a member of the Armed Forces, have ``distinguish[ed]
himself conspicuously by gallantry and intrepidity at the
risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty'' while
engaged in combat and that there have been at least two
eyewitnesses to the act;
Whereas fewer than 155 of the approximately 3,500 Americans
who have been awarded the Medal of Honor are alive, including
two who are natives of the City of Pueblo, Colorado;
Whereas the City of Pueblo, Colorado, will be the site for
the September 2000 reunion of living recipients of the Medal
of Honor; and
Whereas during that reunion, a Medal of Honor memorial, to
be known as ``Heroes Plaza'', will be dedicated: Now,
therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate
concurring), That Heroes Plaza in the City of Pueblo,
Colorado, is recognized, effective as of the September 2000
reunion of living Medal of Honor recipients in that city, as
honoring the recipients of the Medal of Honor and honoring
their commitment to the United States and to serving in the
Armed Forces with courage, valor, and patriotism.
The SPEAKER pro tempore Mrs. Emerson). Pursuant to the rule, the
gentleman from Arizona Mr. Stump) and the gentleman from Illinois Mr.
Evans) each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Arizona Mr. Stump).
General Leave
Mr. STUMP. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members
may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their
remarks and include extraneous material therein on H. Con. Res 351.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Arizona?
There was no objection.
Mr. STUMP. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. STUMP asked and was given permission to revise and extend his
remarks.)
Mr. STUMP. Madam Speaker, H. Con. Res. 351, recognizes Heroes Plaza
in the City of Pueblo, Colorado, as honoring recipients of the Medal of
Honor. The city will host the annual convention of the Medal of Honor
Society later this year. I urge my colleagues to support passage of H.
Con. Res. 351.
Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. EVANS. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of H. Con. Res. 351. This
resolution recognizes Heroes Plaza in the City of Pueblo, Colorado, as
honoring the recipients of the Congressional Medal of Honor. During
September of this year, the City of Pueblo will be host to a reunion of
the living recipients of the Congressional Medal of Honor. In
conjunction with this gathering, it is indeed fitting and appropriate
to recognize Heroes Plaza in Pueblo as honoring the recipients of the
Congressional Medal of Honor.
I want to thank all Members who have worked on this resolution. The
gentleman from Colorado (Mr. McInnis) is a leader in this effort, and
sometime I will have to get down to Pueblo and see the program with the
gentleman from Colorado (Mr. McInnis); and I salute him again for his
work on this issue.
Madam Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back
the balance of my time.
Mr. STUMP. Madam Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the
gentleman from Colorado (Mr. McInnis), the sponsor of this resolution.
Mr. McINNIS. Madam Speaker, first of all, I would like to thank the
chairman, the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Stump), for yielding me this
time. I appreciate the fact that he expedited this resolution. Without
his assistance, we would not have been able to move forward.
Madam Speaker, I also wish to acknowledge the gentleman from Illinois
(Mr. Evans) and appreciate very much his cooperation, and I would
wholeheartedly invite the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Evans) to
Pueblo, Colorado, but only based on a commitment from him that he give
me an extra day or two to take him up into the mountains and do a
little skiing or see a little of that snow, show him the third
district.
Anyway, I appreciate the assistance of both of these gentlemen.
Clearly, the resolution is very simple in its writing, but it is very
deep in its thought. Pueblo, Colorado, has a population of 100,000
people; and of that population four of them have received the Medal of
Honor, probably the highest number of Medal of Honor winners
proportionate to population of any city in the country.
The City of Pueblo takes deep pride in the military. Their schools
incorporate, within their schools, what the real definition of the word
``hero'' means.
The Medal of Honor winners, when they come to Pueblo for these annual
dinners, take extra time and go around to these schools. Many of these
schools are poor schools. They go around and speak to these students,
and I will say it is really refreshing and relives or brings back up a
deep sense of patriotism, for those of us who feel that it is very
important.
So this year, the City of Pueblo is recognizing Heroes Plaza and have
actually commissioned, and it is a very expensive undertaking, but they
have commissioned four statues representing each of the four Medal of
Honor winners of the City of Pueblo.
Unfortunately, two of those four have passed away in the past year
and will not be present, obviously, for the occasion in September; but,
nonetheless, we expect a very large gathering, and we think that this
resolution adds to the patriotism of that particular gathering. So I do
appreciate the expedited schedule, again thanks to the gentleman from
Arizona (Mr. Stump), thanks to the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Evans),
and thanks to the Speaker pro tempore.
Mr. STUMP. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, I would like at this time to thank once again the
gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Evans) for all his cooperation in bringing
these bills to the floor today, and also thank the chairman of the
Committee on Armed Services, the gentleman from South Carolina (Mr.
Spence), and the ranking member, the gentleman from Missouri (Mr.
Skelton), for allowing us to expedite this measure today.
Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by
[[Page H6792]]
the gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Stump) that the House suspend the rules
and agree to the concurrent resolution, H. Con. Res. 351.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor
thereof) the rules were suspended and the concurrent resolution was
agreed to.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
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