[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 48 (Tuesday, March 20, 2007)]
[House]
[Pages H2719-H2720]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
{time} 1845
RENAMING THE DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the
gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Jones) is recognized for 5 minutes.
Mr. JONES of North Carolina. Mr. Speaker, since 1947 Congress has
twice affirmed that the Marine Corps is a separate military service
within the Department of the Navy. In 1947, the National Security Act
stated that we have four separate military services: the Army, the Air
Force, the Navy, and the Marine Corps.
In 1986, the Goldwater-Nichols Act formally acknowledged the roles of
each service's commanding officer and stated that each branch's
commander serves equally as a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
For the past 5 years, this House has sent legislation to the Senate
that would rename the Department of the Navy to be the Department of
the Navy and Marine Corps. Not only has this change received support
from the full House Armed Services Committee and the House itself, but
by such notables as Secretary of the Navy Paul Nitz; Assistant
Secretary of the Navy H. Lawrence Garrett, III; Acting Secretary of the
Navy Daniel Howard; Secretary of the Navy John Dalton; General Carl
Mundy, 30th Commandant of the Marine Corps; General Chuck Krulak, 31st
Commandant of the Marine Corps; the Fleet Reserve Association; the
Marine Corps League; the National Defense PAC; and the National
Association of Uniformed Services.
Wade Sanders, the Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Reserve
Affairs, 1993 to 1998, also declared his support for this change. He
stated: ``As a combat veteran and former naval officer, I understand
the importance of the team dynamic and the importance of recognizing
the contributions of team components. The Navy and Marine Corps team is
just that: a dynamic partnership, and it is important to symbolically
recognize the balance of the partnership.''
Mr. Speaker, I would also like to share part of an editorial
published last year in the Chicago Tribune, and I will submit the
entire editorial for the Record.
[From the Chicago Tribune, Apr. 21, 2006]
Step Up for the Marines
(Editorials)
No service branch shows more respect for tradition than the
U.S. Marine Corps does, which makes it all the more ironic
that tradition denies the corps an important show of respect:
Equal billing with the other service branches.
The Continental Congress ordered ``two Battalions of
Marines'' to be raised in 1775 as landing forces for the
Navy. The Marines have remained within the Navy on government
organization charts ever since, even though the corps
functions through wartime and peacetime as a separate branch
in every other way.
Like the Army, Navy and Air Force, the Marine Corps has its
own command structure. Its commandant holds equal status with
other members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, which happens to
be chaired for the first time by a Marine, Gen. Peter Pace.
Several Marine veterans and supporters have launched an
online petition drive to support a bill proposed by Rep.
Walter B. Jones. The North Carolina Republican, whose
district includes Camp Lejeune, wants to fix the matter
simply by changing the Department of the Navy to the
``Department of the Navy and Marine Corps.''
Jones has twice passed similar measures in the House with
bipartisan support, but the Senate was cool to them. Senate
Armed Services Committee Chairman John Warner, a Virginia
Republican, veteran and former Navy secretary, has promised
``fair consideration'' for the legislation. That's Senate-
speak for a reluctance to commit. His reluctance seems to be
rooted in a sense of tradition. But sometimes it's good to
break with tradition. The War Department, for example,
[[Page H2720]]
became the Defense Department after World War II. The Army
Air Corps was elevated in 1941 to the Army Air Forces and in
1947 to the autonomous Air Force.
The Marines have not asked for complete autonomy. Nothing
structurally needs to change in their relationship with the
Navy, which has served both branches well. The corps only
asks for recognition. Having served their nation proudly and
courageously since colonial days, the leathernecks have
earned a promotion.
Mr. Speaker, I quote the Chicago Tribune: ``No service branch shows
more respect for tradition than the United States Marine Corps . . .
which makes it all the more ironic that tradition denies the Corps an
important show of respect, equal billing with the other service
branches . . . But sometimes it is good to break with tradition.
``The Marines have not asked for complete autonomy. Nothing
structurally needs to change in their relationship with the Navy, which
has served both branches well. The Corps only asks for recognition.''
Mr. Speaker, I hope that my colleagues will join me in support of
this change and cosponsor H.R. 346.
Mr. Speaker, I have before me a poster of a marine who gave his life
for this country. He was killed in Iraq. His family received, after his
death, the Silver Star. And what I have on this poster is from the
Secretary of the Navy. It says: ``The President of the United States
takes pleasure in presenting the Silver Star to the family of Sergeant
Michael Bitz. The sad part of this is, Mr. Speaker, he was a marine who
died for this country. He was a team member with the United States
Navy; yet the citation has nothing but the Secretary of the Navy and
the Navy flag.
Mr. Speaker, I ask you to look at this as I show you what it could be
if this bill becomes law. What it would be with the Secretary of the
Navy and Marine Corps with the Navy flag and the Marine flag. That is
what this bill would do.
And, Mr. Speaker, before I close, I say to my colleagues in the House
I hope you will join me as cosponsor and maybe this year the Senate
will accept the House position because, Mr. Speaker, this man left
three children, twins he never saw, and when they look at this honor
that his father received, wouldn't it be nice 20 years from now for his
family to say, ``My daddy was a marine who gave his life for this
country,'' and it be recognized in the heading of this citation.
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