[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 124 (Wednesday, September 15, 2010)]
[Senate]
[Pages S7140-S7141]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
HONORING OKLAHOMA MEMBERS OF THE ARMY AND AIR NATIONAL GUARD
Mr. DURBIN. I ask unanimous consent the Senate now proceed to
consideration of S. Res. 624, which was submitted earlier today.
The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The clerk will report the
resolution by title.
The legislative clerk read as follows:
A resolution (S. Res. 624) honoring the members of the Army
National Guard and the Air National Guard of the State of
Oklahoma for their service and sacrifice on behalf of the
United States since September 11, 2001.
There being no objection, the Senate proceeded to consider the
resolution.
Mr. DURBIN. I ask unanimous consent that the resolution be agreed to,
the preamble be agreed to, and the motions to reconsider be laid upon
the table.
The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so
ordered.
The resolution (S. Res. 624) was agreed to.
The preamble was agreed to.
The resolution, with its preamble, reads as follows:
S. Res. 624
Whereas members of the Army National Guard and Air National
Guard of the State of Oklahoma reside throughout the State
and come from various communities, backgrounds, and
professions;
Whereas the Army National Guard and Air National Guard of
the State of Oklahoma are composed of: the Joint Forces
Headquarters, the 45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, the 45th
Fires Brigade, the 90th Troop Command, the 189th Regional
Training Institute, Camp Gruber Joint Maneuver Training
Center, the 137th Air Refueling Wing (formerly the 137th
Airlift Wing), the 138th Fighter Wing, the 205th Engineering
Installation Squadron, and the 219th Engineering Installation
Squadron;
Whereas, since September 11, 2001, units and members of the
Army National Guard and the Air National Guard of the State
of Oklahoma have been deployed, and are continuously being
deployed, in support of United States military operations at
home and abroad;
Whereas the 45th Infantry Brigade mobilized in 2003 for
Operation Enduring Freedom and deployed more than 700
soldiers to Afghanistan to provide training to Afghan
Security Forces;
Whereas the 45th Infantry Brigade Combat Team mobilized in
2007 for Operation Iraqi Freedom and deployed more than 2,700
soldiers to provide command and control and conduct security
force and detainee operations, representing the largest
single deployment for the Oklahoma Army National Guard since
the Korean War;
Whereas the 45th Fires Brigade mobilized in 2008 for
Operation Iraqi Freedom and deployed more than 1,000 soldiers
to provide command and control and conduct security force
operations;
Whereas 90th Troop Command units mobilized for Operation
Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom and deployed
more than 2,600 soldiers to conduct combat support and combat
service support missions;
Whereas the 189th Regional Training Institute and Camp
Gruber Joint Maneuver Training Center have provided
professional training to military and nonmilitary personnel
to enhance domestic security and prepare units for
deployments abroad;
Whereas the Oklahoma Army National Guard mobilized in 2005
and deployed more than 2,500 soldiers to support relief
operations in response to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita,
including assisting law enforcement agencies with traffic
control and security, transporting and distributing food,
water, and ice, conducting search and rescue and ground and
air evacuations, providing generator support, and performing
other missions to protect life and property;
[[Page S7141]]
Whereas elements of the 137th Airlift Wing mobilized in
2003 for Operation Iraqi Freedom and deployed to the Kingdom
of Saudi Arabia as part of the largest C-130 wing assembled
in history, transporting troops, food, supplies, and
equipment to United States forces in Iraq;
Whereas elements of the 137th Airlift Wing mobilized in
2003 for Operation Enduring Freedom and deployed to
Uzbekistan, providing critical airlift and logistical support
for United States forces in Afghanistan;
Whereas between 2003 and 2006, the 137th Airlift Wing
transported 39,368 troops and 11,170 tons of critical cargo
to United States forces in Iraq and Afghanistan;
Whereas the 137th Airlift Wing mobilized in 2005 and
deployed one of the first C-130 units to support relief
operations in response to Hurricane Katrina, including
evacuating hospital and nursing home residents to safety by
air, providing critical logistical support, and airlifting
2,500 members of the Oklahoma Army National Guard to
population centers to provide aid to hurricane victims;
Whereas the 138th Fighter Wing mobilized in 2005, 2007, and
2008 for Operation Iraqi Freedom and deployed to Iraq to
provide close air support and engage in combat missions,
during which the 138th Fighter Wing expended 109,000 pounds
of combat ordnance and successfully destroyed numerous
targets; and
Whereas, since September 11, 2001, the 138th Fighter Wing
has flown numerous Air Sovereignty Alert missions in the
United States, protecting domestic targets against attack and
contributing to homeland defense, and in 2008 the 138th
Fighter Wing was recognized as the most active alert facility
in the United States: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Senate--
(1) expresses its gratitude to the members of the Army
National Guard and Air National Guard of the State of
Oklahoma and their families for their service and sacrifice
on behalf of the United States since September 11, 2001; and
(2) recognizes the citizen-soldiers and airmen of the
Oklahoma National Guard as invaluable to the national
security of the United States, vital to defending against
threats both foreign and domestic, and essential for
responding to State and national emergencies.
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