[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 154 (Friday, November 18, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S13334-S13335]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




HONORING SGT. JOHN BASILONE, ``A PLAIN SOLDIER'' AND THREE OTHER MARINE 
                                LEGENDS

  Mr. DURBIN. Mr. President, last week, on the 230th anniversary of the 
U.S. Marine corps, the U.S. Postal Service unveiled a long-awaited set 
of postage stamps honoring four of the corps' greatest heroes.
  Today, a new generation of Americans are risking their lives to serve 
this Nation. Nearly 2,100 Americans have died in Iraq, and more than 
15,000 others have been injured. It is important that we honor their 
sacrifices and the sacrifices of those who came before them. I would 
like to take a few moments to talk about the four legendary marines 
commemorated on the new stamps.
  LTG John A. Lejeune is probably the best known of this fabled four. 
Regarded as ``the greatest of all leathernecks,'' Lieutenant General 
Lejeune made history in World War I as the first marine to lead what 
was predominantly an Army division. He was awarded the Distinguished 
Service Medal from both the Army and the Navy, as well as the French 
Legion of Honor and the Croix de Guerre with Palm for his service 
during World War I. He is best known, however, for his foresight and 
determination to enhance the Marine Corps by introducing specialized 
amphibious assault capabilities into Marine Corps training. Marines 
today annually read his 1921 Birthday Message Order that summarizes the 
history, mission, and traditions of the Marine Corps.
  LTG Lewis B. ``Chesty'' Puller rose through the ranks from private to 
become one of the Marine Corps' most celebrated leathernecks. His 
distinguished service and leadership during critical battles in the `` 
Banana Wars,'' World War II, and the Korean War earned him five Navy 
Crosses and made him one of the most decorated marines ever. He led 
marines in two of the Corps' most daring assaults: at Guadalcanal in 
World War II; and at Inchon in the Korean Conflict. He died in 1971 and 
is still revered in the Corps today for his courage in combat and his 
ability to inspire confidence and loyalty and for the attention and 
respect he showed to those under his command.
  SGM Daniel J. Daly is one of only two marines to be awarded two 
Medals of Honor for separate acts of heroism. According to the 
``Historical Dictionary of the United States Marine Corps'', his 
``record as a fighting man remains unequalled in the annals of Marine 
Corps history'' nearly 70 years after his death. In 1900, Sergeant 
Major Daly was sent to China, where he earned his first Medal of Honor 
during the Boxer Rebellion. In 1915, he was sent to Haiti, where he 
earned his second Medal of Honor fighting off nearly 400 bandits. He 
saw combat as a gunnery sergeant in France during World War I and was 
awarded the Distinguished Service Cross and the French Government's 
Croix de Guerre with Palm. He retired in 1929 and died in 1937, and 
remains a legend to all marines.
  The fourth of the legendary marines honored on the new postage stamps 
is the only one the four killed in combat. One writer described him as 
a ``big, handsome Marine with jug ears and a smile like a neon sign.'' 
GEN Douglas MacArthur called him ``a one-man Army.''

[[Page S13335]]

  Marine GySgt John Basilone was 1 of 10 children of an Italian-born 
tailor, Salvatore Basilone, and his wife Dora. He was born in Buffalo, 
NY and raised in Raritan, NJ.
  He enlisted in the Army when he was 18 and served in the Philippines, 
where he picked up the nickname ``Manila John.'' He fought as a light 
heavyweight prizefighter in the Army, going undefeated in 19 fights. He 
received an honorable discharge after completing his 3-year enlistment, 
returned home, and worked briefly as a truckdriver.
  In July 1940, sensing war clouds on the horizon, John Basilone 
enlisted in the Marine Corps. In October 1942, he was serving with the 
1st Battalion, 7th Marines, 1st Marine Division, on Guadalcanal. For 6 
months, the Army and Marines had fought a bloody battle to hold a 
critical airfield on that island. On October 24, GySgt John Basilone 
and 14 other marines were ordered to hold back many times that number 
of elite Japanese troops.
  A private first class serving under him would later recall that, 
``Basilone had a machine gun on the go for three days and three nights 
without sleep.'' He fired machine guns, fixed guns, and crawled 
repeatedly through Japanese lines to get more ammunition. When the sun 
rose the next morning, the marines still held the airfield, and John 
Basilone was credited by his men with giving them the will to fight on 
the most terrifying night of their lives.
  For his heroism at Guadalcanal, John Basilone was awarded the 
Congressional Medal of Honor and ordered home to take part in a war 
bonds tour. The tour brought in $1.4 million in pledges. He 
crisscrossed the country, met Hollywood startlets, and even met his 
wife, another marine, at Camp Pendleton. He could have remained 
stateside for the remainder of the war but, he turned down the bars of 
a second lieutenant because, he said, he didn't want to become ``a 
museum piece.'' In his words, ``I'm a plain soldier, and I want to stay 
one.'' So just before Christmas 1944, he kissed his new wife goodbye 
and rejoined his ``boys'' in the Pacific.
  On February 19, 1945, SGT John Basilone was serving with the 1st 
Battalion, 7th Marines, 5th Marine Division during the first day of the 
invasion of Iwo Jima. He was on the island less than 2 hours when an 
enemy artillery round exploded, killing Basilone and four members of 
his platoon. He had just destroyed an enemy blockhouse, enabling the 
marines to capture another critical airfield. On his left arm were 
tattooed the words ``Death before Dishonor.'' John Basilone was 27 
years old.
  He was awarded the Navy Cross and Purple Heart posthumously, making 
him the only enlisted marine in World War II to be awarded the 
Congressional Medal of Honor, the Navy Cross, and the Purple Heart. He 
was also awarded the American Defense Service Medal, American Campaign 
Medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, World War II Victory Medal, 
Presidential Unit Citation with Star, and Presidential Unit Citation 
with Bar.
  After the war, John Basilone was reburied at Arlington National 
Cemetery. In 1949, the USS Basilone, a destroyer, was commissioned in 
his honor. Today, a life-sized bronze statue of him watches over his 
hometown of Raritan, NJ, and in 1981, Raritan began a parade in his 
honor. It remains the only parade in the Nation dedicated to the memory 
of one veteran.
  The National Italian American Foundation, the Order of the Sons of 
Italy of America, the Sergeant John Basilone Foundation, and veterans 
and marines organizations worked long and hard to see this ``plain 
soldier,'' as John Basilone called himself, included among the marine 
heroes honored on the new stamps. We thank them for helping to make a 
new generation of Americans aware of the service and sacrifices of this 
son of an Italian immigrant, a true American hero.
  When he died, The New York Times noted in an editorial that there 
always had been Americans like John Basilone, willing to fight for 
their country even when they knew their luck wouldn't last. ``The 
finest monument they could have,'' the newspaper said, ``would be an 
enduring resolve by all of us to this time fashion an enduring peace.''
  Let us never forget how much we owe John Basilone and all those who 
have given so much, over so many generations, so that we can live free.
  .

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