[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 167 (Thursday, December 16, 2010)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2154]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




     REQUIRING REPORTS ON MANAGEMENT OF ARLINGTON NATIONAL CEMETERY

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                          HON. BRUCE L. BRALEY

                                of iowa

                    in the house of representatives

                      Wednesday, December 15, 2010

  Mr. BRALEY of Iowa. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of S. 3860, 
important legislation to ensure proper oversight of Arlington National 
Cemetery. I'm proud to have sponsored companion legislation to this 
bill in the House to see that we fulfill our oversight duties and 
properly honor our fallen heroes.
  Arlington National Cemetery is the final resting place for 
Presidents, Senators, Representatives, Supreme Court Justices, 
Generals, Admirals and the countless soldiers, known and unknown, 
who've died in defense of freedom. It is home to memorials for Iowa 
heroes like the five Sullivan brothers who were lost at sea in 1942 
with the sinking of the USS Juneau, but who are honored with tombstones 
among all of their fallen brothers. Arlington National Cemetery is a 
national institution that symbolizes the service and sacrifice by our 
citizens that makes the United States great, but most recently, it's 
been a sign of government incompetence.
  The recent scandal of unmarked and inappropriately marked gravesites 
is an indignity to the Americans memorialized there, but it is also a 
stain on America. To date, Arlington Cemetery has spent over $5 million 
to computerize records to determine who is buried where, with nothing 
to show for it but continued problems in gravesite identification. The 
misuse of these funds disrespects our honored dead and is a breach in 
the trust of the American people.
  As the son of a World War II veteran, I have the deepest respect for 
our Nation's veterans and I want nothing but the best treatment for 
them in life and in death. We owe them more than they've been given. I 
had the honor of attending the burial service of Specialist Ross 
McGinnis of Knox, PA at Arlington Cemetery as one of my first acts in 
Congress. Specialist McGinnis was killed in action near Adhamiyah, Iraq 
on December 4, 2006 when he threw himself on top of a grenade thrown 
into his HMMWV, saving the lives of at least four other soldiers, 
including one of my constituents. For his actions that day, Spc. 
McGinnis was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor.
  My bill, and the bill we passed, asks for nothing more than the 
respect that our distinguished veterans like Spc. McGinnis deserve. I 
commend my colleagues for their support on this matter.

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