[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 145 (1999), Part 10]
[Senate]
[Pages 14426-14427]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                 TRIBUTE TO GENERAL JAMES L. JONES, JR.

  Mr. CLELAND. Mr. President, it is a distinct honor and personal 
privilege for me to pay tribute to two distinguished Americans. One of 
them is General James L. Jones, Jr., the newly confirmed 32nd 
Commandant of the United States Marine Corps.
  The general hails from Kansas City, Missouri. He spent his formative 
years in France where he acquired his fluency in the French language.
  He is a graduate of Georgetown University School of Foreign Service 
and I understand he still keeps up a Georgetown tradition by playing a 
little basketball now and then.
  General Jones is a warrior--part of a family of distinguished 
marines. His father commanded a Marine Corps Force reconnaissance 
company during the Second World War. His uncle, Lieutenant General 
William Jones, commanded Marine Forces in the Pacific and had a long 
and distinguished combat record.
  On a personal note, General Jones and I served together in Vietnam 
during the siege of Khe Sahn. The general was twice decorated for 
bravery, receiving the Silver Star Medal--our Nation's third highest 
award for valor--as well as the Bronze Star Medal with combat ``V.''
  For me, the general is truly ``a brother of the bond''--a member of 
the small ``band of brothers'' who have served their country with 
courage and honor in the crucible of combat.
  General Jones is a highly experienced infantry commander and staff 
officer--during his long and distinguished career he has served as an 
infantry battalion commander, Marine Expeditionary Unit commander and 
as the commanding general of the Second Marine Division at Camp 
Lejeune, North Carolina.
  He has led marines from the fire-swept rice paddies of Vietnam to the 
mountains of Northern Iraq and Turkey.
  General Jones just recently completed an assignment as the Military 
Assistant to the Secretary of Defense, our former colleague Bill Cohen. 
In this capacity, he accompanied the Secretary around the globe in 
support of the defense of our Nation's vital national interests.
  Many may not know this, but General Jones is also a ``veteran'' of 
the United States Senate. He served as the Marine Corps Liaison Officer 
to the Senate alongside another colleague--then Captain, United States 
Navy, John McCain.
  Mr. President, I, again, welcome Lieutenant General Jones as the 32nd 
Commandant and as the newest member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He 
will lead one of the finest military organizations on Earth, the United 
States Marine Corps. He will be responsible for our Nation's premier 
``911'' force, charged with guiding and directing our Corps of Marines 
into the new century and millennium.
  I know I speak for my colleagues on both sides of the aisle in 
wishing General Jones, his lovely wife Diane--as well as his family Jim 
Jr., Kevin, Greg, and Jennifer--our very best wishes. On June 30, 1999, 
he will take on the awesome responsibility of being the 32nd

[[Page 14427]]

Commandant of the Marine Corps. Semper Fi and Godspeed, General Jones.

                          ____________________