[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 150 (2004), Part 9]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 11793]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




RECOGNIZING 60TH ANNIVERSARY OF ALLIED LANDING AT NORMANDY DURING WORLD 
                                 WAR II

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                         HON. CIRO D. RODRIGUEZ

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, June 1, 2004

  Mr. RODRIGUEZ. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to honor the 60th 
Anniversary of D-Day, the Allied landing at Normandy during World War 
II by American, British, Canadian and other Allied troops. Our nation's 
enduring gratitude goes out to the courageous veterans whose foresight 
and sacrifice brought the Allied forces perhaps the most crucial 
victory of World War II.
  The 60th anniversary of D-Day commemorates a pivotal point in the war 
and a unique moment in time when coordination and valor forged 
unprecedented advancement of the Allied forces against the Nazis and 
their Axis powers. Operation Overlord, the most extensive amphibious 
operation ever to occur involved 153,000 members of the Allied 
Expeditionary Force who stormed five separate beaches at Normandy. It 
was a battle labeled `The Great Crusade in Europe' by Allied Supreme 
Commander Dwight D. Eisenhower. Facing exceptional danger, 800 planes, 
full of airborne paratroopers carrying ninety to one hundred twenty 
pounds of extra weight on their back, invaded occupied Normandy with a 
mission to secure crucial high grounds, roads and bridges. In close 
succession, 30,000 vehicles charged the five separate beaches at 
Normandy, carrying soldiers who became the first to cross the 
formidable English Channel since 1688.
  Poised to attack the disciplined German Army and seized with the loss 
of most of their radios and 60% of their supplies during landing, the 
men at D-Day could not rely on superior technology. In one of history's 
defining moments, the liberation of occupied France depended on human 
skill and will power, on anticipating the enemy and charging 
courageously forward. Ultimately, on D-Day, bravery in combat changed 
history. The soldiers of six valiant divisions met the most uncertain 
of risks to defend the freedom we cherish today, suffering close to 
9,000 casualties. As Winston Churchill said of his British troops, 
`Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so 
few.'
  Today, as we remember the invasion of Normandy as the turning point 
of World War II, we commemorate what the defeat of Hitler's army 
symbolized to the United States and to the world, a landmark in the 
struggle for Liberty and Democracy.
  June 6, 1944, marked the beginning of the end of Hitler's ambition 
for world domination.
  In honoring the anniversary of this democratic touchstone, we 
acknowledge the legacy of America's historic charge--wars fought for 
truly just causes. We etch this day into our Nation's profound memory 
so that we may convey to new generations the respect that liberty 
commands and the gratitude we owe to courage.

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