[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 125 (Thursday, September 16, 2010)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1681-E1682]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        TRIBUTE TO JOHN McGOVERN

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. TOM LATHAM

                                of iowa

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, September 16, 2010

  Mr. LATHAM. Madam Speaker, I rise to recognize John McGovern, a 
Vietnam War Army Ranger and Studies and Observations Group veteran from 
Boone County, Iowa, and to express my appreciation for his dedication 
and commitment to his country.
  The Boone News Republican is currently running a series of articles 
that honors one Boone County veteran every Tuesday from Memorial Day to 
Veterans Day. John McGovern was recognized on Tuesday, August 31. Below 
is the article in its entirety:

                  Boone County Veterans: John McGovern

                           (By Greg Eckstrom)

       John McGovern worries about sounding like he's bragging 
     when he talks about his time in the military.
       After all, with a resume of experiences like McGovern's, 
     it's hard to share them without this concern crossing your 
     head.
       The man once briefed John Wayne. He's been part of the 
     handful of graduates from some of the most difficult military 
     training in the country. He's seen shrapnel come within 
     inches of hitting him, walked through an ambush by himself 
     and cheated death more than half a dozen times.
       And so he recalls these experiences in a quiet, modest 
     voice. He's proud of his time in the military, but quickly 
     dismisses any comments that even tread on being complimentary 
     with a quick statement.
       ``I've been lucky,'' he said. ``That's all.''
       Coming from a large military family, McGovern was born in 
     Oceanside, Calif., and raised in several states around the 
     country--Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kentucky, Alaska--as his 
     father was in the military.
       The decision to join the military was made by the young 
     McGovern when he was 16 years old.
       ``I was ready to get out on my own,'' he said. ``I told [my 
     father] I wanted to join, and he told me he'd sign for me. I 
     took all my tests and everything and when I had my 17th 
     birthday, they flew me out for Fort Carson, Colo.''
       McGovern originally wanted to enter the infantry, but was 
     given the offer to become an Army Ranger and jumped on the 
     chance.
       Once in Florida, McGovern ran into two sergeants--Pierre 
     and Lehew--who took him under their wing.
       ``I ran patrols with him for six months at night, and then 
     doing my job in the daytime. Finally they said I was ready,'' 
     he said. ``So I put in for Ranger school, passed it, and then 
     they kept me as an instructor. Oh, it was rough. That's 
     actually probably one of the roughest schools other than 
     Special Forces.''
       Ranger school started with 275, graduated 70, and only 57 
     had enough points to receive the tab.
       After passing Ranger school, the three went to Scuba 
     school, then Airborne school, then Special Forces school.
       Around 50 people were enrolled in Special Forces school. 
     After its completion, only McGovern, Lehew and one other 
     person remained.
       ``I've been lucky,'' he said. ``I would pick out the worst 
     man, and I'd say, `I'm going to be here longer than him.' And 
     if he failed out, then I picked the next one. The main thing 
     with all these hard schools . . . if you set your mind that 
     you're going to pass it,

[[Page E1682]]

     you'll pass it. But if you have any doubts, you're going to 
     fail.''
       After training, McGovern went to the 7th Special Forces 
     group and Lehew, the 5th.
       Stationed in Vietnam, at one point, McGovern's unit was 
     having problems with ambushes, so they called up an 
     additional force to help. Among them was Lehew.
       ``Naturally, I wanted to go out with him, but my team 
     sergeant told me no,'' McGovern said. ``They wanted to keep 
     me on the airfield with the reserve company.''
       A while later, they got a radio call that the team had 
     walked into an ambush and had one American and a couple 
     Vietnamese wounded. McGovern asked if they wanted him to come 
     out, but they declined, saying they were coming back in.
       A couple hours later, they received another radio message 
     that another ambush had hit them, this time with casualties. 
     McGovern asked again if they wanted him, but they declined, 
     and asked him to call in helicopters to transport the dead 
     and wounded.
       When the dead and wounded arrived back via helicopter, 
     McGovern helped unload. Reaching up to grab a boot, he pulled 
     and found his comrade, Lehew, was one of the dead. After 
     helping load Lehew into the helicopter, the team sergeant 
     ordered McGovern to round his company up and go escort the 
     team back to camp.
       That was during his first tour in Vietnam, which lasted 
     about 13\1/2\ months. Upon returning to the U.S., he became 
     an instructor in the Special Forces course before 
     volunteering to go back. This time, he ended up in the 
     Studies and Observations Group, or SOG.
       ``The main mission for SOG was . . . you take two or three 
     Americans and about three or four Vietnamese or Montegnards 
     and they'd drop us off in North Vietnam, Leose or Cambodia,'' 
     he said. ``And we'd sneak around out there and try and gather 
     intel or call in air strikes or whatever.''
       During his second tour, McGovern shared his wife's, Janet 
     McGovern, favorite story from his service.
       Shortly before heading home, McGovern was asked if he 
     wanted to run one more mission, which he readily accepted. He 
     was told to gather a team together and that a helicopter 
     would arrive in two hours.
       ``So I got a bunch of MCO's together and we got out there, 
     and when the helicopters came in, we jumped on and took 
     off,'' McGovern said. ``Well, the target area was clouded 
     over so we couldn't get in, so we had to turn around and come 
     back. They told us to be ready to go the next morning when 
     the helicopters got there.
       The next day, when the helicopter arrived, a Major notified 
     McGovern that he was taking over. He was taking out a team 
     that was closer to the target area, so McGovern said, `OK,' 
     and stood down.
       ``That afternoon at 1 o'clock, we got a radio message that 
     they had been shot down and all of them killed,'' McGovern 
     said.
       Following his service, McGovern had a chance to meet up 
     again with many of the men he served with overseas in Las 
     Vegas for an SOA reunion. When asked what it's like to see 
     these guys again, after going through so much with them in 
     the service, McGovern's response is short and to the point.
       ``Oh God,'' he laughed. ``Great.''
       For those joining the military, McGovern heartily endorses 
     going through jump school and entering Special Forces . . . 
     based on one condition.
       ``If possible, put in for jump school and special forces. 
     If you're single,'' he said. ``Married men do it, but we had 
     a 95 percent divorce rate and a 100 percent re-enlistment 
     rate.''
       McGovern's loyalty to his service, and his country, is 
     unquestionable. Would he do anything differently if he could 
     go back? ``No.'' What's been his favorite part of his 
     military career? ``All of it.'' Do you ever miss it? ``Oh 
     yeah.''
       He's not being evasive in the questions . . . for McGovern, 
     the shortest answer is the most accurate one. And he 
     absolutely means it.
       ``You have to really experience it to understand it,'' he 
     said. ``Unless you're in combat, the rest of it's just like 
     having a job here in civilian life. You've got your job to 
     do.''
       Dedication . . . it's what's required for military service, 
     and it's what McGovern has in spades. If he was called up 
     today, Janet McGovern summed up what the response would be.
       ``If they called him today and said, `Can you report 
     tomorrow to do something?' he'd be gone,'' she said. ``And 
     I'd have to let him go, because that's who he is. That's just 
     what would happen. That's who he is. He loves his country 
     more than anything.''
       And that's not bragging . . . for McGovern, just like with 
     his stories, that's just the truth.

  I commend John McGovern for his many years of loyalty and service to 
our great Nation. It is an immense honor to represent him in the United 
States Congress, and I wish him all the best in his future endeavors.