[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 55 (Tuesday, April 27, 2004)]
[House]
[Pages H2396-H2397]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         MISSING WITHOUT ACTION

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Washington (Mr. McDermott) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. McDERMOTT. Mr. Speaker, I agree with the previous speaker. The 
growing division in America over war in Iraq pales by comparison with 
the gut wrenching images that divided America during the Vietnam War. 
Thousands of men were called to serve their countries in Vietnam. 
Senator John Kerry did just that. Other Americans chose to be 
conscientious objectors and serve their country in noncombatant roles.
  Still other Americans had one or another kind of deferment or joined 
the National Guard. A week ago, the administration chose to enlist 
Republicans in a new kind of draft for a new kind of war.
  In this Chamber, Republicans launched a sneak attack against the 
heroism and patriotism of Senator John Kerry. The American people 
deserve to know the service records of Senator John Kerry and President 
George W. Bush. He can provide one of them. In 1968, John Kerry 
commanded a U.S. Navy swift boat in Vietnam. This was a 50-foot 
aluminum boat that was heavily armed but had no armor protection.
  In 1968, George W. Bush joined the Texas Air National Guard jumping 
ahead of 150 people on the waiting list.
  On the night of December 2, 1968, John Kerry commanded a Navy swift 
boat. It came under intense fire while on patrol. John Kerry was 
wounded and awarded the Purple Heart.
  George W. Bush meanwhile was accepted into pilot training after 
scoring the lowest score possible to qualify.
  In early 1969, the swift boat John Kerry commanded in Vietnam was in 
a fire fight with the enemy. John Kerry was wounded by shrapnel and 
awarded a second Purple Heart.

[[Page H2397]]

  When George W. Bush joined the Texas Air National Guard, he could 
have volunteered for overseas duty as did John Kerry, but he checked 
the other box on the form, the one that said ``do not volunteer.''
  In March 1969, John Kerry's swift boat was one of five on patrol in 
the Bay Hap River. They came under attack. The boat was hit. An intense 
fire fight ensued. Suddenly a mine detonated near his boat. John Kerry 
was hit and bleeding. Viet Cong fired automatic weapons from the shore. 
A man in Kerry's boat fell overboard. John Kerry would not leave that 
man behind. Under intense fire, John Kerry turned the boat around. With 
both sides exchanging fire, John Kerry moved to the bow of the swift 
boat, exposed to enemy fire. Still bleeding, John Kerry did not 
hesitate. He reached down into the water, bullets whizzing by. John 
Kerry grabbed hold of the sailor and pulled him into the boat. For his 
courage and valor under fire, John Kerry was awarded the distinguished 
Combat ``V.''
  John Kerry was wounded three times in battle serving his country. 
Yet, Republicans on this floor rose to dishonor every combat veteran by 
attacking John Kerry and others.
  In 2000, Senator Max Cleland of Georgia lost both legs and one arm in 
Vietnam. Republicans disgraced themselves by impugning the man's 
courage and service to the Nation. America needs to know. Where was 
President Bush during the Vietnam War?
  Missing without action, that is where the President was.
  In February 1972, the military stripped George W. Bush of his flight 
status. He was suspended from flying for failure to take a required 
physical exam. Why? Why did George W. Bush not take the physical? Would 
a physical have revealed a top gun or a smoking gun? We do not know.
  There is an 11-month gap in George W. Bush's record, from May 1, 1972 
to April 1, 1973. George W. Bush was not only grounded during this 
period, he was on the ground in Alabama working in a political 
campaign. That is not a mission in the National Guard manual. We would 
like to know more, but the National Guard Bureau Chief told a Spokane, 
Washington newspaper he was under orders not to talk.
  Why is that?
  We know that Senator John Kerry was wounded in battle three times. We 
know that Senator John Kerry never left a man behind. We know that 
Senator John Kerry fought with courage and valor on behalf of his 
country.
  We know that George W. Bush flew under the radar, because that is the 
only explanation of how a pilot suspended from flying parachuted into a 
Republican political campaign in Alabama.
  John Kerry, Max Cleland. America has many heroes from the Vietnam 
War. It is time Republicans and the administration honor the courage 
and valor of American veterans, no matter what party they belong to.

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