[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 19]
[House]
[Pages 26400-26401]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




       HONORING THE SERVICE OF THE 278TH ARMORED CAVALRY REGIMENT

  Mr. DAVIS of Tennessee. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to take 
my Special Order at this time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Tennessee?
  There was no objection.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Tennessee (Mr. Davis) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. DAVIS of Tennessee. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize and 
honor the brave men and women who serve our country as part of the 
278th Armored Cavalry Regiment as they return home to a State and 
Nation grateful for their service.
  The 278th Armored Cavalry Regiment is one of two armored cavalry 
regiments still in existence. The 278th is known as the Tennessee 
Cavalry and is headquartered in Knoxville, Tennessee. The other ACR is 
part of the regular Army.
  The 278th was formed and reorganized on June 21, 1977, from units and 
elements of the 278th Infantry Brigade. Additionally, units of the 2nd 
and 3rd Battalions of the 117th Infantry Regiment and several other 
units of various types from the Tennessee Army National Guard were 
added to round out this regiment. The regiment's motto, ``I Volunteer, 
Sir,'' is taken from a time in Tennessee's history that exemplifies the 
attitude of the men and women who serve in America's Armed Forces. In 
1846, a call went out for 2,800 volunteers from the State of Tennessee 
to take part in the War with Mexico; 38,000 Tennesseeans answered the 
call, earning the Tennessee Militia the ever-lasting nickname of 
``Volunteers.'' It is from this heritage that the 278th Armored Cavalry 
Regiment's motto, ``I Volunteer, Sir,'' originated.
  This Regimental Shoulder Patch was derived using the green color 
traditionally associated with cavalry and armor. The three white stars 
are adapted from the Tennessee State flag. The blue divisions allude to 
the Tennessee, the Houlston, and the French Broad rivers, environs of 
the regiment.
  In June of 2004, the regiment was alerted and mobilized in support of 
Operation Iraqi Freedom III, the third phase of the deployment of U.S. 
forces to Iraq. In November of 2004, they deployed from Camp Shelby, 
Mississippi. This regiment took on a slightly different look for this 
mobilization. It became referred to as the 278th Regimental Combat 
Team, from which this organization derives a portion of its history. 
Soldiers of the 278th were primarily assigned in the Diy' Ala province 
northeast of Baghdad near the Iranian border. The regiment replaced the 
30th Heavy Separate Brigade of the North Carolina Army National Guard.
  The sheer size and scope of their mission continues to impress me. 
Over 3,000 soldiers from the Tennessee National Guard are assigned to 
this division.

                              {time}  1815

  And their mobilization for the war in Iraq was the largest in 
Tennessee history since World War II. As it was in World War II, their 
aim was to restore basic freedoms to a people who had been stifled 
under the oppressive regime of a tyrant dictator, a dictator who would 
torture and kill his own people because they were different than him, 
or because they had the audacity to express themselves in one form or 
another.
  While in Iraq, the 278th, like all of our men and women serving in 
the Middle East, played a major role in what we all hope to be 
watershed moments in a democratic Iraq's history. The 278th provided 
security for the Iraqi people as they participated in their first 
election which took place this past January. For this election, the 
troops distributed, picked up, and delivered ballots. They again 
provided their support, this time to the Iraqi army, during the vote on 
the new Iraqi constitution in October 2005. They also helped restore 
the basic infrastructure necessary to get the Iraqi economy on its feet 
and give the Iraqi people a little foundation upon which they can make 
the country their own.
  They helped open schools, dig wells, improve roads and establish 
basic services, like of electricity, water and sewers. They also helped 
establish numerous hospitals. Thanks to the renovation and construction 
of work done by the 278th, more than 50 schools were ready for classes, 
nearly 70 water and sewer projects were completed, as were 25 
electricity and power projects, 8 health clinics were established, and 
32 road projects were finished.
  Of course, the most harrowing part of their mission was the daily 
fighting with insurgents that they encountered in northeastern Iraq. 
While working to suppress insurgency, the 278th conducted 13,000 combat 
patrols, oversaw the destruction of 340 weapon caches of bomb-making 
materials and 275 stockpiles of unexploded ordinances.
  Additionally, despite constantly being under attack, the men and 
women of the 278th were able to train members of the Iraqi police and 
the Iraqi army, over 10,000 policemen, soldiers and border enforcement 
personnel. This training is essential to our mission in Iraq. In order 
for the Iraqi

[[Page 26401]]

people to truly feel empowered in their new country, they must complete 
the circle of modern democratic nations.
  One half of the circle is being completed by the participation of the 
Iraqi citizens in both the electoral process and their developing free 
economy. The other half of the circle, and perhaps the most vital 
piece, is an established Iraqi security force run by and composed of 
Iraqi citizens that has the ability to protect its own people without 
relying on the American military. When the day comes that the Iraqi 
people and soldiers can provide protection for the average citizen to 
go about their daily lives with the knowledge they are safe, that will 
be the day when all Iraqis can point to their country, a country able 
to stand on it own, and they can tell the world we are free.
  Mr. Speaker, I would like to say that all of my thoughts and prayers, 
along with those of constituents, continue to go to all of our military 
personnel serving in Iraq, including the 900 Tennessee Guardsmen, who 
are still ``in country.'' Thank you for their great work. We look 
forward to their return. God continue to be with the men and women of 
the 278th and the United States Armed Forces. Keep them safe and 
strong. Return them home to America.

                          ____________________