[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 96 (Monday, June 6, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2792-S2793]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                                 D-DAY

  Mr. PORTMAN. Mr. President, today is a very important day in American 
history, June 6, the anniversary of D-day. One of the most important 
and consequential battles of World War II occurred on that day.
  Every year I have served in this body, I have a practice of coming to 
the floor and reciting the famous D-day Prayer that Franklin D. 
Roosevelt delivered to the Nation on the morning of June 6, 1944. It 
was a consequential battle in the sense that it really marks the 
beginning of the end of World War II, the beginning of the end of 
Hitler. It is my favorite Presidential statement.
  Seventy-eight years ago, as the American people slept in their beds, 
the greatest naval invasion in history began and the Greatest 
Generation was born. On that fateful day, tens of thousands of American 
soldiers, sailors, and airmen joined our allies from around the world 
to begin what General Eisenhower called the ``Great Crusade,'' one that 
sought to free a continent and liberate millions from the grip of 
tyranny. They came by amphibious landing craft, by gliders laden with 
men and material, by parachutes deployed deep behind enemy lines. And 
on the beaches called places like Omaha and Utah and at the cliffs of 
Pointe du Hoc, they struck a mortal blow to the Nazi regime.
  Thousands would give their lives for this cause--over 2,500 Americans 
alone. Like many in this Chamber, I have seen the American cemeteries 
there, the rows of white crosses and the stars of David that go on and 
on are a stark reminder of the price those brave heroes paid for all of 
us.
  These men did not go into battle alone. As General Eisenhower said to 
the Allied Expeditionary Force on the eve of this risky battle: ``The 
hopes and prayers of liberty loving people everywhere march with you.''
  As the battle was engaged, President Franklin Roosevelt spoke to the 
Nation. He did not choose to address the American people with one of 
his trademark fireside chats, nor did he choose to use a speech; 
instead, he delivered words of prayer by radio address, as the fate of 
Europe and indeed the entire free world hung in the balance.
  It was a powerful prayer that transcended all faiths. I think it 
captures, perhaps better than anything else I have ever seen, what we 
as Americans should be most proud of. We are liberators, not 
conquerors, and it also talks about the righteousness of that cause.
  This prayer must never be forgotten, and that is why I come to the 
floor, and that is why I would like to recite it now.
  This is what he said:

       My fellow Americans:
       Last night, when I spoke to you about the fall of Rome, I 
     knew at that moment that troops of the United States and our 
     allies were crossing the Channel in another and [yet] greater 
     operation. It has come to pass with success thus far.
       And so, in this poignant hour, I ask you to join with me in 
     prayer:
       Almighty God: Our sons, pride of our nation, this day have 
     set upon a mighty endeavor, a struggle to preserve our 
     Republic,

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     our religion, and our civilization, and to set free a 
     suffering humanity.
       Lead them straight and true; give strength to their arms, 
     stoutness to their hearts, steadfastness in their faith.
       They will need Thy blessings. Their road will be long and 
     hard. For the enemy is strong. He may hurl back our forces. 
     Success may not come with rushing speed, but we shall return 
     again and again; and we know that by Thy grace, and by the 
     righteousness of our cause, our sons will triumph.
       They will be sore tried, by night and by day, without 
     rest--until . . . victory is won. The darkness will be rent 
     by noise and flame. Men's souls will be shaken with the 
     violences of war.
       For these men are lately drawn from the ways of peace. They 
     fight not for the lust of conquest. They fight to end 
     conquest. They fight to liberate. They fight to let justice 
     arise, and tolerance and good will among all Thy people. They 
     yearn but for the end of battle, for their return to the 
     haven of home.
       Some will never return. Embrace these, Father, and receive 
     them, Thy heroic servants into Thy kingdom.
       And for us at home--fathers, mothers, children, wives, 
     sisters, and brothers of brave men overseas, whose thoughts 
     and prayers are ever with them--help us, Almighty God, to 
     rededicate ourselves in renewed faith in Thee in this hour of 
     great sacrifice.
       Many people have urged that I call the nation into a single 
     day of [special] prayer. But because the road is long and the 
     desire is great, I ask that our people devote themselves in a 
     continuance of prayer. As we rise to each new day, and again 
     when each day is spent, let the words of prayer be on our 
     lips, invoking Thy help to our efforts.
       Give us strength, too--strength in our daily tasks, to 
     redouble the contributions we make in the physical and the 
     material support of our armed forces.
       And let our hearts be stout, to wait out the long travail, 
     to bear sorrows that may come, to impart our courage unto our 
     sons wheresoever they may be.
       And, O Lord, give us faith. Give us faith in Thee; faith in 
     our sons; faith in each other, faith in our united crusade. 
     Let not the keenness of our spirit ever be dulled. Let not 
     the impacts of temporary events, of temporal matters of but 
     fleeting moment--let not these deter us in our unconquerable 
     purpose.
       With Thy blessing, we shall prevail over the unholy forces 
     of our enemy. Help us to conquer the apostles of greed and 
     racial arrogances. Lead us to the saving of our country, and 
     with our sister nations into a world unity that will spell a 
     sure peace--a peace invulnerable to the schemings of unworthy 
     men. And a peace that will let all of men live in freedom, 
     reaping the just rewards of their honest toil.
       Thy will be done, Almighty God.
       Amen.

  Yes, amen. What a powerful statement--one that deserves to be 
remembered for generations to come.
  By the way, to ensure its place in history, back in 2013, shortly 
after I was elected to this body, I introduced legislation called the 
World War II Memorial Prayer Act with former Senator Mary Landrieu and 
then after her, Senator Joe Lieberman. Representative Bill Johnson took 
the lead in the House of Representatives.
  This was legislation that directed the Secretary of the Interior to 
install a plaque at or near the World War II Memorial on the National 
Mall here in Washington with these words, the words of FDR's D-day 
prayer. And we said no Federal funding would be used for this; we would 
raise the funding privately.
  It was the Ohio Christian Alliance president, Chris Long, who first 
came to me with the idea of a plaque displaying this historic prayer. 
Since that legislation was signed into law in 2014, which kicked off 
the lengthy Commemorative Works Act process for siting and installing 
the plaque at the Memorial, the Friends of the National World War II 
Memorial and the National Park Service have worked to develop and 
refine the final plaque design and receive a variety of approvals from 
the National Park Service, the Commission of Fine Arts, the National 
Capital Planning Commission, and others.
  In the meantime, we have gone ahead with a beautiful temporary plaque 
that has been in place since 2019 at what is called the Circle of 
Remembrance, which is just north of the World War II Memorial.
  So if you are here in Washington, go to the Mall, see the World War 
II Memorial, which is spectacular. Then look to the north and go to the 
Circle of Remembrance, and you will see the prayer on display there. By 
the way, it is the only prayer on display on the National Mall.
  We hope that the final version of this plaque and the Circle of 
Remembrance being remodeled will be done by the end of this year.
  The process has been going on for 8 years, longer than World War II 
itself actually, so we are eager to see that final plaque installed, 
and I know it will be. The temporary plaque, by the way, was generously 
donated to the Friends of the National World War II Memorial with the 
help of John Nau, from Houston, TX, a great patriot, and also the Ohio 
Christian Alliance and others who provided funding for this.
  In October 2020, the Lilly Endowment provided a $2 million grant for 
the construction and installation of the final plaque, and it is this 
committed financial support that will allow the project to get across 
the finish line, even with some hurdles. So I thank the Lilly Endowment 
for their support.
  I also want to recognize the tireless efforts of the Friends group, 
especially Holly Rotondi, who has led the effort in fundraising and 
coordinating the project over the past several years. Thank you, Holly.
  D-day was a day of tremendous loss and also monumental triumph. Those 
who lost their lives that day did not die in vain. The fate of the free 
world rested on their shoulders. Those brave young men, many Americans, 
charging the beaches of Normandy, and President Roosevelt's prayer that 
day helped to comfort a nation in a time of great uncertainty. I am 
glad that his words will soon take their proper place in our memorial 
to the war that changed the course of history.
  I yield the floor.

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