[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 171 (Wednesday, November 30, 2016)]
[House]
[Pages H7024-H7028]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
OFFICE OF STRATEGIC SERVICES CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL ACT
Mr. HUIZENGA of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules
and pass the bill (S. 2234) to award the Congressional Gold Medal,
collectively, to the members of the Office of Strategic Services (OSS)
in recognition of their superior service and major contributions during
World War II.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
S. 2234
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Office of Strategic Services
Congressional Gold Medal Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
The Congress finds the following:
(1) The Office of Strategic Services (OSS) was America's
first effort to implement a system of strategic intelligence
during World War II and provided the basis for the modern-day
American intelligence and special operations communities. The
U.S. Special Operations Command and the National Clandestine
Service chose the OSS spearhead as their insignias.
(2) OSS founder General William J. Donovan is the only
person in American history to receive our Nation's four
highest decorations, including the Medal of Honor. Upon
learning of his death in 1959, President Eisenhower called
General Donovan the ``last hero''. In addition to founding
and leading the OSS, General Donovan was also selected by
President Roosevelt, who called him his ``secret legs'', as
an emissary to Great Britain and continental Europe before
the United States entered World War II.
(3) All the military branches during World War II
contributed personnel to the OSS. The present-day Special
Operations Forces trace their lineage to the OSS. Its
Maritime Unit was a precursor to the U.S. Navy SEALs. The OSS
Operational Groups and Jedburghs were forerunners to U.S.
Army Special Forces. The 801st/492nd Bombardment Group
(``Carpetbaggers'') were progenitors to the Air Force Special
Operations Command. The Marines who served in the OSS,
including the actor Sterling Hayden (a Silver Star
recipient), Col. William Eddy (a Distinguished Service Cross
recipient who was described as the ``nearest thing the United
States has had to a Lawrence of Arabia''), and Col. Peter
Ortiz (a two-time Navy Cross recipient), were predecessors to
the Marine Special Operations Command. U.S. Coast Guard
personnel were recruited for the Maritime Unit and its
Operational Swimmer Group.
(4) The OSS organized, trained, supplied, and fought with
resistance organizations
[[Page H7025]]
throughout Europe and Asia that played an important role in
America's victory during World War II. General Eisenhower
credited the OSS's covert contribution in France to the
equivalent to having an extra military division. General
Eisenhower told General Donovan that if it did nothing else,
the photographic reconnaissance conducted by the OSS prior to
the D-Day Invasion justified its creation.
(5) Four future directors of central intelligence served as
OSS officers: William Casey, William Colby, Allen Dulles, and
Richard Helms.
(6) Women comprised more than one-third of OSS personnel
and played a critical role in the organization. They included
Virginia Hall, the only civilian female to receive a
Distinguished Service Cross in World War II, and Julia Child.
(7) OSS recruited Fritz Kolbe, a German diplomat who became
America's most important spy against the Nazis in World War
II.
(8) America's leading scientists and scholars served in the
OSS Research and Analysis Branch, including Ralph Bunche, the
first African-American to receive the Nobel Peace Prize;
Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Arthur Schlesinger, Jr.;
Supreme Court Justice Arthur Goldberg; Sherman Kent; John
King Fairbank; and Walt Rostow. Its ranks included seven
future presidents of the American Historical Association,
five of the American Economic Association, and two Nobel
laureates.
(9) The U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Intelligence
and Research traces its creation to the OSS Research and
Analysis Branch.
(10) James Donovan, who was portrayed by Tom Hanks in the
Steven Spielberg movie ``Bridge of Spies'' and negotiated the
release of U-2 pilot Francis Gary Powers, served as General
Counsel of the OSS.
(11) The OSS invented and employed new technology through
its Research and Development Branch, inventing new weapons
and revolutionary communications equipment. Dr. Christian
Lambertsen invented the first underwater rebreathing
apparatus that was first utilized by the OSS and is known
today as SCUBA.
(12) OSS Detachment 101 operated in Burma and pioneered the
art of unconventional warfare. It was the first United States
unit to deploy a large guerrilla army deep in enemy
territory. It has been credited with the highest kill/loss
ratio for any infantry-type unit in American military history
and was awarded a Presidential Unit Citation.
(13) Its X-2 branch pioneered counterintelligence with the
British and established the modern counterintelligence
community. The network of contacts built by the OSS with
foreign intelligence services led to enduring Cold War
alliances.
(14) Operation Torch, the Allied invasion of French North
Africa in November 1942, was aided by the networks
established and information acquired by the OSS to guide
Allied landings.
(15) OSS Operation Halyard rescued more than 500 downed
airmen trapped behind enemy lines in Yugoslavia, one of the
most daring and successful rescue operations of World War II.
(16) OSS ``Mercy Missions'' at the end of World War II
saved the lives of thousands of Allied prisoners of war whom
it was feared would be murdered by the Japanese.
(17) The handful of surviving men and women of the OSS whom
General Donovan said performed ``some of the bravest acts of
the war'' are members of the ``Greatest Generation''. They
have never been collectively recognized for their heroic and
pioneering service in World War II.
SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL.
(a) Presentation Authorized.--The Speaker of the House of
Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate
shall make appropriate arrangements for the presentation, on
behalf of the Congress, of a gold medal of appropriate design
in commemoration to the members of the Office of Strategic
Services (OSS), in recognition of their superior service and
major contributions during World War II.
(b) Design and Striking.--For purposes of the presentation
referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary of the Treasury
(referred to in this Act as the ``Secretary'') shall strike a
gold medal with suitable emblems, devices, and inscriptions,
to be determined by the Secretary.
(c) Smithsonian Institution.--
(1) In general.--Following the award of the gold medal in
commemoration to the members of the Office of Strategic
Services under subsection (a), the gold medal shall be given
to the Smithsonian Institution, where it will be displayed as
appropriate and made available for research.
(2) Sense of congress.--It is the sense of Congress that
the Smithsonian Institution should make the gold medal
received under paragraph (1) available for display elsewhere,
particularly at other appropriate locations associated with
the Office of Strategic Services.
SEC. 4. DUPLICATE MEDALS.
The Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in bronze of
the gold medal struck pursuant to section 3 under such
regulations as the Secretary may prescribe, at a price
sufficient to cover the cost thereof, including labor,
materials, dies, use of machinery, and overhead expenses, and
the cost of the gold medal.
SEC. 5. STATUS OF MEDALS.
(a) National Medals.--The medals struck pursuant to this
Act are national medals for purposes of chapter 51 of title
31, United States Code.
(b) Numismatic Items.--For purposes of section 5134 of
title 31, United States Code, all medals struck under this
Act shall be considered to be numismatic items.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Michigan (Mr. Huizenga) and the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Foster)
each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Michigan.
General Leave
Mr. HUIZENGA of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that
all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend
their remarks and include extraneous material on this bill.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Michigan?
There was no objection.
Mr. HUIZENGA of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
Mr. Speaker, every wartime President of the United States--and
probably every wartime leader in history--has had some clandestine help
from men and women who risked life and limb to report on and sometimes
to disrupt the actions of the enemy. No leader of such clandestine
force was as uniformly successful, as visionary, or ultimately had as
much impact on both his country's affairs and those of the entire world
as Colonel William J. ``Wild Bill'' Donovan.
{time} 1730
President Franklin Roosevelt charged Colonel Donovan with the
daunting task of unifying and streamlining the previously ad hoc U.S.
efforts at intelligence gathering. The unit he founded, the Office of
Strategic Services, was the foundation upon which the postwar
government built the Central Intelligence Agency.
Each branch of the armed services contributed members of the OSS,
which trained, equipped, and fought with resistance forces in the
Atlantic and Pacific theaters. Its various operations were the
forerunners of many of today's Special Operations Forces. Four future
directors of central intelligence--Allen Dulles, William Casey, William
Colby, and Richard Helms--were all OSS operatives, and at least a third
of the operatives were women, including the world's first and favorite
TV chef, Julia Child, of all people.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of S. 2234, the Office of
Strategic Services Congressional Gold Medal Act, introduced by Senator
Blunt of Missouri. The bill, which passed the Senate on February 23,
has companion legislation to H.R. 3929, introduced by our Republican
colleague, Representative Latta, which has 320 House cosponsors.
The bill authorizes the striking and awarding of a single gold medal
of appropriate design to commemorate the members of the Office of
Strategic Services in recognition of their superior service and major
contributions during World War II.
After awarding the medal, it will be given to the Smithsonian museum
where it will be available for display there or elsewhere, as
appropriate. The Treasury secretary is authorized to make and offer for
sale bronze replicas of the medal at a price that will help defray the
design and production costs of the actual medal.
Mr. Speaker, long after World War II ended, most of the efforts of
the OSS remained classified, and we probably still do not know all of
the hair-raising tales that might be told. One thing is not secret--we
owe those men and women an enormous debt of gratitude, not only for
their work during the war but for the groundwork that they laid towards
what is clearly the best intelligence service in the world today. We
should recognize those contributions by awarding the Congressional Gold
Medal to these heroes.
I urge immediate passage of this bill.
I reserve the balance of my time.
House of Representatives,
Committee on House Administration,
Washington, DC, November 30, 2016.
Hon. Jeb Hensarling,
Chairman, Committee on Financial Services,
Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: I write to you regarding S. 2234. As you
know, the bill was received in the House of Representatives
on February 23, 2016 and referred to the Committee on
Financial Services and in addition
[[Page H7026]]
to the Committee on the Committee on House Administration.
The bill seeks to award the Congressional Gold Medal,
collectively, to the members of the Office of Strategic
Services (OSS) in recognition of their superior service and
major contributions during World War II. S. 2234 passed the
Senate without amendment by unanimous consent on February 22,
2016.
I realize that discharging the Committee on House
Administration from further consideration of S. 2234 will
serve in the best interest of the House of Representatives
and agree to do so. It is the understanding of the Committee
on House Administration that forgoing action on S. 2234 will
not prejudice the Committee with respect to appointment of
conferees or any future jurisdictional claim. I request that
this letter and any response be included in the Congressional
Record.
Sincerely,
Candice S. Miller,
Chairman.
____
House of Representatives,
Committee on Financial Services,
Washington, DC, November 30, 2016.
Hon. Candice Miller,
Chairman, Committee on House Administration, Washington, DC.
Dear Chairman Miller: Thank you for your November 30th
letter regarding S. 2234, the ``Office of Strategic Services
Congressional Gold Medal Act.''
I am most appreciative of your decision to forego action on
S. 2234 so that it may move expeditiously to the House floor.
I acknowledge that although you are waiving action on the
bill, the Committee on House Administration is in no way
waiving its jurisdictional interest in this or similar
legislation. In addition, if a conference is necessary on
this legislation, I will support any request that your
committee be represented therein.
Finally, I shall be pleased to include your letter and this
letter on S. 2234 in the Congressional Record during floor
consideration of the same.
Sincerely,
Jeb Hensarling,
Chairman.
Mr. FOSTER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
I rise today in support of S. 2234, legislation to award a
Congressional Gold Medal to members of the Office of Strategic Services
in recognition of their significant service and contributions against
the Axis Powers during World War II.
I am pleased to note that the legislation has already passed the
Senate with unanimous consent, and that companion legislation,
introduced here in the House, has already received the endorsement of
320 cosponsors. Upon passage here in the House, the legislation will be
cleared for the President's signature.
Created at the start of World War II, the Office of Strategic
Services was the Nation's first effort to implement a coordinated
intelligence system, laying the foundation for our modern-day
intelligence and special operations capabilities.
In addition to honoring and recognizing the meaningful and personal
sacrifice of the thousands of Americans who served as part of the
Office of Strategic Services, the legacy of the OSS offers a number of
lessons that continue to hold value to this day. Importantly, the
legacy of the OSS serves as a reminder that effective coordination
across our Nation's intelligence agencies continues to play a
foundational role in promoting our national security interests.
The OSS also serves to remind us of the importance of working
strategically and in concert with our longstanding allies to prevail
against those who seek to do our Nation harm. Indeed, during World War
II, the OSS played a critical role in organizing, training, supplying,
and fighting alongside resistance organizations throughout Europe and
Asia.
Moreover, throughout the war, the OSS demonstrated that our
government is at its best when it brings together a wide range of
individuals with diverse backgrounds. At its height in late 1944, the
Office of Strategic Services employed nearly 13,000 individuals, nearly
a third of whom were women. The service also drew its personnel not
only from the military but also from civilians from all walks of life,
including economists, psychologists, geographers, and a wide range of
other fields.
Upon the dissolution of the Office of Strategic Services at the close
of World War II, General William J. Donovan, who headed the OSS, stated
that, ``We have come to the end of an unusual experiment. That
experiment was to determine whether a group of Americans constituting a
cross section of racial origins, of abilities, of temperaments, and of
talents could meet and risk an encounter with long-established and
well-trained enemy organizations.''
He went on to conclude that, ``You can go with the assurance that you
have made a beginning in showing the people of America that only by
decisions of national policy based upon accurate information can we
have the chance of a peace that will endure.''
So I am pleased that we are honoring the thousands of men and women
who made the sacrifice to serve as part of the Office of Strategic
Services, whose contribution was so critical to America's ultimate
triumph over the Axis Powers.
I am also pleased that the legislation will allow future generations
to appreciate these contributions to our Nation and the world. By
designating the Smithsonian Institution as the custodian of the medal,
and by allowing for its display at other locations associated with the
Office of Strategic Services, the legislation will ensure that the
legacy and the lessons that can be drawn from the contributions made by
members of the Office of Strategic Services will not be forgotten.
So as we enter into unchartered waters with the incoming
administration, I hope that we will all take pause and heed the lessons
of the OSS and remember that America is at its best when we work
together with our longstanding allies and when we recruit diverse
personnel to serve our government.
I also hope that it serves as a reminder of the importance of taking
care of our veterans once their service has ended and they return to
civilian life.
I urge adoption of the legislation.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. HUIZENGA of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may
consume to the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Latta), the author of the House
bill.
Mr. LATTA. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of S. 2234, the Office of
Strategic Services Congressional Gold Medal Act, companion legislation
I introduced earlier this Congress as H.R. 3929 to honor and recognize
these brave veterans for their superior service and major contributions
made during World War II.
The Office of Strategic Services, the OSS as it is often referred to,
was America's first strategic intelligence service during World War II
and provided the basis for the modern-day American intelligence and
special operations communities.
Under the leadership of OSS founder, General Bill Donovan, the OSS
conducted acts of great bravery during the war, and their efforts were
another factor to the Allied victory in World War II. Let me name a
few. These efforts included:
Organizing, training, supplying, and fighting with resistance
organizations throughout Europe and Asia;
Engaging in successful guerrilla warfare deep in enemy territory;
Establishing intelligence networks before the successful Allied
invasion of French North Africa, known as Operation Torch;
Rescuing more than 500 downed allied airmen behind enemy lines in
Yugoslavia during Operation Halyard, one of the most daring and
successful rescue missions of World War II;
Conducting mercy missions at the end of the war that saved thousands
of Allied prisoners of war; and
Inventing and utilizing new technology, weapons, and revolutionary
communications equipment never before seen.
General Eisenhower said that if it did nothing else, the photographic
reconnaissance conducted by the OSS before the D-day invasion in June
of 1944 justified its creation.
I am truly proud to be here today to honor these men and women who
truly embody the greatest generation. Several members of the OSS came
from northwest and west central Ohio, including Arthur Jibilian, who
took part in Operation Helyard in Yugoslavia; Captain Stephanie Czech
Rader; and another veteran who flew OSS missions in B-24s behind enemy
lines into occupied France. They have earned and deserve this
recognition. Congress and our Nation are proud of them, and we are
grateful for their dedicated service. This Congressional Gold Medal is
one way we can extend our gratitude.
[[Page H7027]]
Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Speaker Ryan, Leader McCarthy, and all
of the leadership team, Senators Blunt and Warner, Chairman Nunes and
Ranking Member Schiff, Chairman Ed Royce, Representative Marcy Kaptur,
and all of my other colleagues, including the 320 Members that
cosponsored this legislation, for their time, hard work, and support. I
would also be remiss if I did not also thank the OSS Society and all
those involved for their time and hard work in keeping the legacy of
these OSS veterans forever alive.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting passage of
S. 2234 and bestow upon the OSS the Congressional Gold Medal.
I thank the gentleman for yielding.
Mr. FOSTER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentlewoman from
Ohio (Ms. Kaptur), a member of the Appropriations Committee.
Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, I thank Congressman Foster for yielding the
time.
I am deeply honored to rise today in an official capacity, but also
personally, to pay tribute to the patriotic and fearless soldiers,
heroes and heroines, of the OSS. Their worthiness to be awarded this
Congressional Gold Medal by our Nation for heroism in battle is long
overdue.
Over 13,000 exceptional Americans comprise the Office of Strategic
Services formed clandestinely during World War II by President Franklin
Roosevelt. Roosevelt aimed to create a corps of specially trained
intelligence warriors to help win that harrowing conflict. For these
many decades since the end of World War II, the secrecy of the OSS and
its member soldiers have been maintained.
I can attest to this. Our family's beloved Uncle Tony, full name
Anthony Rogowski, our mother's brother, was selected as one of its
members. He was a corporal and his medals include: Army Good Conduct,
American Theater Medal, Pacific Theater Medal, World War II Victory
Medal, and Distinguished Unit badge; Army Serial Number: 35-33-943.
He is buried in a simple grave at Calvary Cemetery in Toledo, Ohio,
with a gravestone marker provided by the U.S. Department of Veterans
Affairs.
Yes, there is an Army crest on its facing. But there is nothing
there, nor in any other location, that would tell his family, or those
who will inherit our Nation in the years ahead, what a brilliant man
and brave soldier he was.
After his death, it was my particular privilege to present his
precious leather flight jacket to his daughter, RoseAnn Rogowski
Koperski, and his son, John Rogowski of Toledo. Uncle Tony was part of
the elite OSS, trained rigorously as warfighters. We still do not know
where he was trained. We know he was dispatched to the Pacific front,
flown over the hump in the China-Burma-India campaign. He parachuted at
night behind enemy lines under fire as he hit the ground to gather
intelligence. He drove Jeeps filled with dynamite to the front along
the Burma Road, fighting to cut off the supply of oil to the Japanese
military.
Our bill recognizes OSS Detachment 101 that operated in Burma and
pioneered the art of unconventional warfare. It was the first United
States unit to deploy a large guerrilla army deep in enemy territory.
It has been credited with the highest kill/loss ratio for any infantry-
type unit in American military history and was awarded a Presidential
Unit Citation.
Our uncle was knifed in a foxhole in Burma by a soldier from the
Imperial Japanese Army, wounded badly, and he suffered throughout his
life with terrible malaria bouts and flashbacks contracted in theatre.
He passed away in his mid 50s, far too young, of poor health, all due
to war injuries.
He was never recognized or acknowledged for his heroism, like the
other men and women who valiantly fought as members of the OSS. I loved
Uncle Tony. He was a complicated man with a rare and devilish sense of
humor and a hearty laugh and grin. You just knew on meeting him there
was depth, as well as honor.
He was war wise, sharing gripping stories about the war when I was a
child, peppered with his own conclusions about the merit of the
conflicts in which he participated.
His letters sent home during the war to our mother, which she kept
banded in a special corner of our parents' cedar chest, were unusual.
Parts of the letters had been cut out by his superiors; others had
lines that were blackened out so as not to reveal his location or any
aspect of what he was doing. As a child, that fascinated me, though I
did not completely understand what it meant. His family never really
knew where he was deployed nor how he arrived where he was sent. He
never revealed the specific details of what he actually did.
And now through this legislation, sponsored by my dear friend and
colleague, Ohio Congressman Bob Latta, and 320 other Members, on a
bipartisan basis, we now make America's military history more whole and
complete. Frankly, it is the highest honor to pay just tribute to the
OSS members, though long overdue.
{time} 1745
As I participate in the passage of this legislation, I am reminded of
how America's greatest strength is the weaving together of
intergenerational experience from one era to another within our
families and communities and then extended to the American family.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentlewoman has expired.
Mr. FOSTER. I yield the gentlewoman an additional 1 minute.
Ms. KAPTUR. I thank the gentleman.
Today, in the gallery, we have noble veterans of the OSS.
We know our Nation stands on your broad shoulders.
Through their patriotism and sacrifice, America still is a young
nation but is growing and is keeping what we have learned close to our
hearts. In paying Gold Medal tribute to the members of the OSS, America
honors those who bequeathed precious liberty to us, and we must carry
that torch forward as it was carried at such a great price by our
forebears.
I would like to acknowledge Charles Pinck, whose father served as a
member of the OSS, for his commitment to educate the public about this
valiant group.
May God bless the members of the OSS, their families and friends. May
our efforts here award them the Gold they so nobly, royally, and
selflessly earned, and may God continue to bless America.
Mr. HUIZENGA of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may
consume to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Rothfus).
Mr. ROTHFUS. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of S. 2234, to
award the Congressional Gold Medal to the members of the Office of
Strategic Services in recognition of their superior service and major
contributions during World War II.
The accomplishments of the OSS are too numerous to mention here. We
cannot imagine what the world would look like today had evil forces
prevailed over good in World War II, but thanks to the invaluable
contribution of the brave servicemembers of the OSS, we do not have to.
The OSS organized, trained, supplied, and fought resistance
organizations throughout Europe and Asia that played an important role
in America's victory during World War II. The men and women of the OSS
were pioneers in counterintelligence, technology, and unconventional
warfare.
The OSS was the prototype for modern-day American intelligence and
special operations communities. The outstanding Americans who serve
today as Navy SEALs, U.S. Army Special Forces, Air Force Special
Operations Command, Marine Special Operations Command, and more can
trace their roots to the OSS.
For these and many other reasons, it is right that we honor the
servicemembers of the OSS for their extraordinary contributions to
American history and that future generations of Americans learn about
the crucial role they played in keeping America safe.
While so many of the OSS servicemembers have already gone to their
eternal rest, including my own father-in-law, Edgar Lewis, it is
fitting and good that we pass this legislation while we continue to
have OSS members among us today.
Mr. FOSTER. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill.
I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. HUIZENGA of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, I appreciated the personal
touches and discussions from Representative Latta and Representative
[[Page H7028]]
Kaptur as they talked about their family members in this very important
organization. With that, I urge the bill's passage.
I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Huizenga) that the House suspend the rules
and pass the bill, S. 2234.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
____________________