[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 53 (Wednesday, April 2, 2003)]
[House]
[Pages H2670-H2671]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        SUPPORT AMERICA'S TROOPS

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Skelton) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. SKELTON. Madam Speaker, yesterday the House of Representatives 
overwhelmingly passed Concurrent Resolution 109, a resolution that 
calls on families of America's servicemembers to display the Blue Star 
and Gold Star banners in their homes or in their businesses. The 
gentleman from Arizona (Mr. Shadegg), the gentleman from California 
(Mr. Hunter), and I asked families to restore this proud tradition, 
first established during the First World War and because our country is 
at war in the Middle East and around the world in the fight against 
terrorism.
  I want to take this opportunity to encourage all Members of Congress, 
and indeed all Americans, to support our men and women in uniform, now 
and in the days ahead. I would like to explain why and suggest a few 
ways in which we could do something concrete to benefit our troops. 
When our Nation calls, servicemen and women volunteer. They volunteer 
to be the point of the spear, protecting the Nation's interests both 
here and abroad. Today we have an all-volunteer force, and let me say 
it is the finest, best-trained fighting force the world has ever seen. 
It is not just the 1.4 million active duty servicemembers I am 
referring to. There are also 875,000 citizen soldiers, National 
Guardsmen and Reservists, part-time volunteers who serve when called. A 
growing number of these service soldiers have been called. They have 
been called to serve on multiple deployments over the past decade. Over 
218,000 National Guardsmen and Reservists have been activated since 
September 11, 2001. Over 31,000 of those are now serving in Iraq.
  The question is what can we do to show our appreciation to these 
dedicated men and women. Let me make a few suggestions.
  First, Members of Congress can reach out to the troops and their 
families in their districts. I urge my colleagues to visit the National 
Guard armories in their towns and cities across the country and talk 
with the servicemembers, talk with their families, or visit a Reserve 
center or active military base and spend time with these brave and 
courageous individuals. In the district I am privileged to serve is 
Whitman Air Force Base, the home of the B-2 bomber; and Fort Leonard 
Wood, which has an engineer battalion that is deployed.
  While I have always been a great believer in getting out and spending 
time with our troops, there are other ways we can support our military. 
Because of heightened security concerns, the Defense Department has 
discouraged Americans from sending letters and parcels to our deployed 
troops. However, the Department has a virtual thank you card at Defend 
America Web site which I will make available

[[Page H2671]]

through the Congressional Record. Or one may want to send an e-mail 
greeting through Operation Dear Abby, which I will make available 
through the Congressional Record.
  To help servicemembers stay in contact with loved ones back home, 
donations to Operation Uplink at a Congressional Record address will 
help provide calling cards to the troops.
  During these times of conflict, recognition of our men and women in 
uniform grows. It does not take too many hours of watching our troops 
in action on the television to know that they are demonstrating acts of 
heroism on a daily basis. As we Members of Congress have an obligation 
to let our men and women know that we appreciate and admire their 
contribution to our national security, visiting facilities in our 
districts and using the Internet are just two ways we can let our 
servicemen and women know that we appreciate what they are doing for 
our country.
  Let me say that I know some of my colleagues do not agree with how 
the United States came to be involved in this war. Some Members feel 
the United Nations weapons inspectors should have been given more time 
to look for weapons of mass destruction. Others believe we did not 
exhaust all of our diplomatic options. I think it is of paramount 
importance that we support the troops, the men and women in uniform who 
are literally putting their lives on the line for our country, the 
United States of America, regardless of whether one agrees with the war 
itself or not. And I hope my colleagues will take these words of advice 
to heart.
  More than 65 servicemembers have died since the global war on 
terrorism began, and over 200 have been wounded or injured. These 
individuals and their families having sacrificed for our freedom, and 
our thoughts and our prayers are with them. The Nation will not forget 
the price these servicemembers have paid to defend our country and the 
freedoms and our interests. I hope that all Members will take advantage 
of the opportunities we have as Members of Congress to show our men and 
women in uniform that we care, that we really care.

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