[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 160 (2014), Part 8]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 10697]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




      A RESOLUTION TO HONOR MARINE CORPS GENERAL CLIFTON B. CATES

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. STEPHEN LEE FINCHER

                              of tennessee

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, June 23, 2014

  Mr. FINCHER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to introduce a resolution 
expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the Secretary 
of the Navy should name an appropriate Navy ship in honor of Marine 
Corps General Clifton B. Cates of Tiptonville, Tennessee.
  Clifton Bledsoe Cates was born in Tiptonville, Tennessee on August 
31, 1893. After graduating from high school at Missouri Military 
Academy in 1910 and the University of Tennessee with a Bachelor of Law 
degree in 1916, he was commissioned as second lieutenant in the Marine 
Corps and began active duty on June 13, 1917.
  During World War I, General Cates served with the 6th Marine 
Regiment, fighting in France. He was the most decorated Marine Corps 
Officer of World War I, having been awarded the Navy Cross, Army 
Distinguished Service Cross with Oak Leaf Cluster, Silver Star Medal 
with Oak Leaf Cluster, Purple Heart Medal with Oak Leaf Cluster, the 
Legion of Honor, and the Croix de Guerre with Gilt Star and 2 palms.
  When General Cates returned to the United States in September 1919, 
he served in Washington, DC as a White House aide and Aide-de-Camp to 
the Commandment of the Marine Corps. From 1923 to 1925, Cates served a 
tour of sea duty as commander of the Marine Detachment aboard the USS 
California, and in 1929, he was deployed to Shanghai, China, where he 
rejoined the 4th Marines and served for three years. He then returned 
to the United States for training at the Army Industrial College, and 
by 1940, he was named the Director of the Marine Officers Basic School 
at the Philadelphia Navy Yard.
  In 1942, Colonel Cates led the 1st Marine Regiment at Guadalcanal, 
for which he was awarded the Legion of Merit. From there, he took 
command of the 4th Marine Division in the Marianas operation, the 
Tinian campaign and the seizure of Iwo Jima. He received several 
distinguished awards for his service at Iwo Jima, including the 
Distinguished Service Medal with a gold star. After his tour of duty in 
the Pacific, Cates returned to the United States to serve as Commandant 
of the Marine Corps Schools at Quantico until 1944. He then returned to 
the Pacific until the end of the war as commander of the 4th Marine 
Division.
  On January 1, 1948, Cates was promoted to the rank of General and 
sworn in as Commandant of the Marine Corps. He served in this position 
for four years until he retired on June 30, 1954 after 37 years of 
military service. General Cates passed away on June 4, 1970 at the 
United States Naval Hospital in Annapolis, Maryland and was buried with 
full military honors on June 8, 1970 at Arlington National Cemetery.
  Because of his heroic and dedicated service to our nation, I fully 
support the Secretary of the Navy naming an appropriate ship after 
General Clifton B. Cates. It's an honor to introduce this legislation.

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