[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 155 (2009), Part 19]
[Senate]
[Pages 25427-25428]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                   TRIBUTE TO LTG STEPHEN M. SPEAKES

 Mr. LIEBERMAN. Mr. President, today I recognize the 
distinguished service of LTG Stephen M. Speakes as he prepares to 
retire after 35 years of exceptional service to this Nation as an

[[Page 25428]]

officer of the U.S. Army. I have had the pleasure to work with General 
Speakes over the last several years as he served as the Army deputy 
chief of staff, G-8, a position in which he was responsible for 
matching the service's resources to the needs of our soldiers. His 
compassionate leadership, unwavering commitment and selfless dedication 
are exemplified in his enumerable contributions throughout his 
distinguished career.
  General Speakes was commissioned as an armor officer in 1974. He 
began his career with troop-leading assignments in the 3d Armored 
Cavalry Regiment at Fort Bliss, TX, and the Third Brigade, Third 
Infantry Division in Aschaffenburg, Germany. He commanded the 2d 
Squadron, 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment at Bad Kissingen, and the 2d 
``Blackjack'' Brigade in the First Cavalry Division, Fort Hood, TX.
  General Speakes' service also includes assignments on the Joint Staff 
with the srategic arms reduction talks nuclear negotiations team in the 
Joint Staff's J5 Directorate for Strategic Plans and Policy, as a war 
planner in the Joint Staff's J7 Directorate for Operational Plans and 
Joint Force Development, and on the Army Staff's Force Development 
Directorate. A graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, 
General Speakes received a master's degree in government from 
Georgetown University and was a fellow at Harvard University's John F. 
Kennedy School of Government. At Harvard, he coauthored a study of U.N. 
peace enforcement, ``A Blue Helmet Combat Force.''
  His senior assignments include a tour in Europe beginning in 1997 as 
the V Corps G3 and chief of staff. He then served as the deputy G3 at 
U.S. Army Forces Command before assignment as the chief of staff of the 
III Corps in August 2001. From August 2002 thru June 2003, General 
Speakes served as the assistant division commander of the 4th Infantry 
Division, Mechanized, and deployed in that capacity for Operation Iraqi 
Freedom. In June 2003, he departed Tikrit, Iraq, and reported to Kuwait 
as the deputy commanding general, Third U.S. Army and Coalition Forces 
Land Component Command. While there, he oversaw the redeployment of 
250,000 soldiers and marines as the United States executed the first 
Iraq force rotation. Returning to the United States, General Speakes 
served as the director, force development on the G-8 staff from August 
2004 to December 2006 before assuming his current responsibilities.
  His lovely wife, Mrs. Gigi Speakes, has supported General Speakes and 
all the members of his commands in every assignment for the past 30 
years. She has been integral to all the contributions that this Army 
team has been able to make to soldiers, the Army and the Nation. She is 
an outstanding volunteer in all aspects of her service to the Army.
  The Speakes are the epitome of an Army family. Clearly, General and 
Mrs. Speakes' greatest achievement was the raising of two incredible 
sons, Grant and Brennan. Both are Army officers who have served on 
multiple deployments in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Their 
continued success in the military is the fruit of their parents' 
enduring love and dedication to them and other junior soldiers.
  On behalf of the Senate and the United States of America, I thank 
General Speakes, his wife Gigi, and his entire family for the 
commitment, sacrifice, and contribution that they have made throughout 
his honorable military service. I congratulate them on completing an 
exceptional and successful career, and wish them the greatest happiness 
as they move on to the next phase of their life together.

                          ____________________