[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 1]
[Senate]
[Pages 1043-1044]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                           AFGHANISTAN VISIT

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, we have entered our tenth year of 
fighting in Afghanistan, and we can never express our gratitude enough 
to the heroic men and women of our Armed Forces who continue the battle 
there. Many of them--nearly one-fifth of all U.S. forces in that 
country--are from units based in Kentucky: Fort Campbell, Fort Knox, 
the Kentucky National Guard, the Marine Corps and the Reserves.
  I recently led a Congressional delegation to the region and spent 
some time in Afghanistan to see up close the progress our forces are 
making there in clearing out the Taliban and creating the opportunity 
for Afghan security forces to assume greater responsibility. During my 
visit, I had the honor of meeting many of the servicemembers from 
Kentucky. I told them that we are proud of them, we support them, we 
thank them for their service, and we pray for their safe return.
  Forces in Afghanistan from Kentucky units number more than 18,000 
strong. They have seen much military success--but in the process, many 
have made the ultimate sacrifice for their country.
  The 101st Airborne Division, based out of Fort Campbell and known as 
the Screaming Eagles, endured a particularly hard year, losing more 
than 100

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soldiers since last March. In fact, nearly one out of five American 
lives lost in Afghanistan in the past year has been lost from the 
101st. The men and women who stood beside them honor their sacrifice by 
continuing the fight.
  After a long deployment, many of the soldiers from the 101st are due 
to return home over the next few months, just as their brothers-in-arms 
from Fort Knox are deploying. About 3,500 soldiers from the 3rd Brigade 
Combat Team, 1st Infantry Division and the 703rd Explosive Ordnance 
Disposal Detachment will arrive in Afghanistan in the next few weeks or 
are already there. It is the biggest deployment from Fort Knox since 
World War II.
  Hundreds of servicemembers from the Kentucky Air and Army National 
Guard are performing critical missions in Afghanistan as well. The 
123rd Airlift Wing, the 2123rd Transportation Company, the 20th Special 
Forces Group and a Kentucky Guard Agricultural Development Team have 
all recently sent men and women to the fight, some who have served as 
many as six tours.
  It was my honor to meet some of these brave warriors in person this 
month when I visited the headquarters of the 101st Airborne Division at 
Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan and also during my stop at Camp 
Leatherneck in the southern part of that country, the outpost for a 
number of Kentucky Marines.
  These extraordinary men and women leave their loved ones thousands of 
miles behind and put on their country's uniform every day, with their 
lives in the balance. They have seen their friends and fellow soldiers 
and Marines make the ultimate sacrifice, and yet they fight on to 
accomplish a difficult mission. And they continue to make their 
country, the Commonwealth of Kentucky, and this Senator very proud.
  When we honor our servicemembers, we also honor their families, who 
endure the long months with a loved one gone and in harm's way. This 
country would not have the finest fighting force in the world without 
their sacrifice and support as well.
  It is brave servicemembers like the ones I got to meet who keep this 
country free. When both the Senate and the House of Representatives met 
in joint session recently to hear the President deliver his State of 
the Union address, we did so under the cloak of freedom that these 
heroes provide. America is grateful for their service and their 
sacrifice.
  I yield the floor.

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