[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 14 (Wednesday, January 28, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Page S585]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    RECOGNIZING THE U.S. COAST GUARD

  Mr. SESSIONS. Mr. President, today I honor the 100th anniversary of 
the U.S. Coast Guard, officially established on this day, January 28, 
1915, when President Woodrow Wilson signed legislation merging the 
Revenue Cutter Service and the U.S. Life-Saving Service into one 
organization.
  The Coast Guard has a long and noble history, dating back to 1790, of 
defending the shores of our Nation. It remains a vital component of our 
national security infrastructure--performing law enforcement, 
lifesaving, and military duties. Whether it is intercepting drug 
smugglers in the Gulf of Mexico or rescuing stranded fishermen off the 
coast of Alaska, the Coast Guard always answers the call and performs 
its mission bravely. Our Nation is safer thanks to the work done by the 
brave men and women of the U.S. Coast Guard.
  I am honored that my home State of Alabama has a significant Coast 
Guard presence in the city of Mobile. U.S. Coast Guard Sector Mobile is 
home to over 200 Active-Duty military and civilian personnel who play a 
crucial role in enforcing our Nation's laws and providing maritime 
security along the gulf coast of Alabama, Mississippi, and Florida. 
Mobile is also home to one of the Coast Guard's largest units, the U.S. 
Coast Guard Aviation Training Center. The Aviation Training Center is 
home to roughly 600 Active-Duty military and civilian personnel, and it 
serves as the Coast Guard's aviation and capabilities development 
center--responsible for training Coast Guard pilots. It also serves as 
an operational Coast Guard air station, performing traditional Coast 
Guard aviation missions such as search and rescue, homeland security, 
and environmental protection in an area encompassing the Gulf of Mexico 
from the Louisiana-Texas border to the Florida panhandle.
  I am proud of what these Coast Guard installations do to protect the 
people of the gulf coast and the Nation as a whole. I would like to 
thank the U.S. Coast Guard for everything it does to enhance and ensure 
the national security of the United States, and I congratulate and 
honor the Coast Guard on its 100th anniversary.

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