[Congressional Record Volume 167, Number 179 (Tuesday, October 12, 2021)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1088]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                    GENERAL RAYMOND ODIERNO MEMORIAM

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. JOE WILSON

                           of south carolina

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, October 12, 2021

  Mr. WILSON of South Carolina. Madam Speaker, my thoughts and prayers 
go out to the family of General Ray Odierno, who passed away over the 
weekend. I was grateful to have met the General in my capacity as a 
Member of Congress and fellow veteran, and appreciate his service to 
our country.
  As reported in the New York Post:

       Gen. Raymond T. Odierno, a New Jersey native and former 
     Army Chief of Staff, who led the successful ``surge'' that 
     turned both the tide of battle and American public perception 
     in the Iraq War, died Friday at age 67.
       ``The general died after a brave battle with cancer; his 
     death was not related to COVID,'' his family said in a 
     statement. There were no further details given.
       The Association of the United States Army reported the 
     general had a lengthy record and did several tours overseas.
       ``During more than 37 years of Army service, he commanded 
     units at every echelon, from platoon to theater, and served 
     in Germany, Albania, Kuwait, Iraq and across the U.S.,'' the 
     report stated.
       Odierno, who rose to the rank of four-star general, served 
     three tours of duty in Iraq and it was under his command that 
     elements of the 4th Infantry Division captured Iraqi dictator 
     Saddam Hussein on Dec. 13, 2003.
       ``Caught like a rat,'' Odierno famously stated, in one of 
     the signature moments of America's post-9/11 military 
     conflicts.
       ``He was in the bottom of a hole with no way to fight 
     back,'' Odierno, then a major general, told global media, as 
     images were broadcast around the world of the once-feared 
     former dictator being dragged out of hiding by U.S. troops.
       Odierno was born Sept. 8, 1954, in Rockaway Township, NJ, 
     the son of a World War II Army sergeant and working mother. A 
     star high school athlete, the towering 6-foot-5 inch Odierno 
     played both baseball and football at the U.S. Military 
     Academy. He graduated from West Point in 1976.
       Odierno was charged by the Bush administration in 2007 with 
     commanding the controversial so-called ``surge'' in the Iraq 
     War.
       The rapid deployment of tens of thousands of additional 
     troops proved a success in quelling violence in Iraq and 
     reducing American casualties and boosted Odierno's profile in 
     military and global affairs.
       He gained further international prominence in 2008, after 
     replacing Gen. David Petraeus as the commander of the 
     multinational force in Iraq.
       Odierno was known within military circles for his deep 
     commitment to the Army and to those soldiers, and their 
     families, killed and wounded in service of their nation.
       ``Ray firmly believes soldiers aren't in the Army, they are 
     the Army,'' Army Secretary John McHugh said at Odierno's 
     retirement ceremony in 2105, the Army Times reported. ``It's 
     always been his No. 1 job to serve them well and serve them 
     honorably. Whether it's fighting in Tikrit or visiting a 
     hospital bed at Walter Reed, he's led with a quick mind, 
     calloused hands and a servant's spirit.''
       Odierno is survived by his wife Linda, who he met in high 
     school, as well as their three children, including retired 
     Capt. Tony Odierno, a combat veteran, and their families.

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