    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1996, Book I)]
    [March 18, 1996]
    [Pages 476-478]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    [[Page 476]]

    Remarks to the Community at Fort Polk, Louisiana
    March 18, 1996

        Thank you. General Shalikashvili, Deputy Secretary White, General
    Sheehan, General Tilelli, General Shelton, Admiral Miller, General
    Sherfield, Command Sergeant Major Austin, Command Sergeant Major Laye;
    to the Members of Congress who are here, Senators Johnston and Breaux
    and Congressmen Jefferson, Fields, Hayes, and McCrery; to the members of
    the Joint Readiness Training Center, the members of the Fort Polk
    community, to the Department of Defense civilians, and to all the men
    and women of America's Armed Forces.
        Let me say I was very impressed by that recent maneuver where you
    rushed the ropes--[laughter]--and I was very impressed when all the
    people behind you rushed up behind you, and I know you're a lot warmer
    now and that's the main reason you did it. [Laughter] I wish you were
    about 5 feet taller; you could be a windbreaker for us up here.
    [Laughter]
        I am delighted to be the first sitting President ever to visit Fort
    Polk. I know well the Joint Readiness Training Center. As some of you
    may know, before it came here it was located in my home State when I was
    Governor, in Little Rock at the air base there and at Fort Chaffee. I
    must say when I was Governor and it was announced that we were losing
    the JRT Center to Fort Polk, I had some qualms about it. But from the
    looks of things today, it's been a good move. It's stronger than ever
    before, and the JRTC is serving the United States well. Thank you very
    much.
        As all of you know, I come here today primarily to stand with the
    veterans of Operation Uphold Democracy, the men and women who restored
    freedom to Haiti. We have been true to our word and true to our mission
    because of your skill and professionalism. The vast majority of our
    forces have returned from Haiti on time, just as we said they would. The
    last 500 American peacekeepers are now packing up, and in less than 30
    days they too will be home.
        You made history by showing once again that when America acts on
    behalf of its values and its interests, it gets the job done. You
    undertook a difficult task, and every single one of you who served in
    Haiti can say with great pride, ``Mission accomplished.'' You made a
    difference for our Nation's security and for a neighbor in need. We and
    other nations will now have to help Haiti in the hard road ahead of it,
    but the military job was done, done by you and other allies who came to
    work with you. And for that, every single one of you should be very
    proud.
        Eighteen months ago our Nation faced a serious challenge. Just a few
    hundred miles from our shores a brutal regime was torturing and
    murdering the citizens of Haiti. More than 3,000 of them had been killed
    in a reign of terror. The democracy that they had voted for in
    overwhelming numbers was stolen from the people. Tens of thousands were
    fleeing to America and to other nations in unsafe boats and rafts, and
    many died along the way. There was a clear threat to our borders and to
    the civility of our region. Because it was the right thing to do and
    because it was in our interest, we decided to intervene. We gave our
    word that democracy would be restored. And because the military
    dictators came to the United States and broke their word when they
    promised to leave, you, the men and women of Uphold Democracy, kept
    America's word.
        From beginning to end, this mission was a testament to the skill and
    professionalism of America's Armed Forces. The coup leaders knew from
    the outset they were facing the best trained, the best equipped, the
    best prepared fighting force on Earth. When they learned that the 82d
    Airborne and other units were on the way, they gave way. That enabled
    our troops to land on the ground without bloodshed and prove once again
    that our military might is the indispensable muscle behind our
    diplomacy. You are trained to fight. Time and again, you have stood down
    aggression and triumphed in battle.
        In Haiti you came to a different kind of mission and showed the
    world another side of America's magnificent military. You and our troops
    who are now in Bosnia have demonstrated a dedication to fighting for
    peace as great as your ability to prevail in war. You've paved the way
    for the return of Haiti's democratic government. You took guns off the
    street. You helped to develop a local police. You gave the people there
    a new sense of security. You

    [[Page 477]]

    fixed the roads and bridges and brought the food and medicine and
    cleared the way for a return to normal civilized life. You gave the
    people of Haiti the breathing space they need to reclaim their
    democracy, to get their economy started, to undertake the hard work that
    only they can do of building a free nation. Now Haiti has enjoyed its
    first democratic transfer of power in 200 years as a nation, thanks to
    you.
        While the country remains poor, while its institutions remain
    fragile, this country now has better prospects for the future than at
    any time in the past. You did the job. When I sent America's troops to
    Haiti in September of 1994, joined by 27 other countries' troops, I said
    that the United States forces would remain through the inauguration of a
    new president. That took place on the 7th of February.
        I want to now thank and ask you to join me in thanking the
    extraordinary men who led the U.S. and the U.N. efforts in Haiti,
    General Hugh Shelton, General Dave Meade, General George Fisher, and
    General Joe Kinzer. Let's give them a big hand for their service and
    leadership. [Applause]
        There was a lot of extraordinary service from others in uniform as
    well, people like Army Special Forces Sergeant First Class Gregory
    Cardot, who gave the ultimate sacrifice. Today we remember his loss. We
    honor his devotion to duty. And we honor that of all those of Uphold
    Democracy. Like American service men and women everywhere, those of you
    who served in Haiti went above and beyond the call of duty.
        I would like to mention just a few of those in closing who went the
    extra distance and made the extra difference. Sergeant First Class
    Joseph Register, Jr., saw a mob beating a Haitian man. Ignoring his own
    safety, Sergeant Register plunged into the crowd, shielded the badly
    wounded man, and gave him first aid. He protected the man despite great
    personal risk until other soldiers arrived to help. And he probably
    saved that man's life. For his brave actions, Sergeant Register received
    the Soldier's Medal, the Army's highest peacetime award for heroism.
        Airman First Class Patricia Hasboun, who we just saw receive the
    Joint Service Commendation Medal, used her own Creole language skills to
    help teach a Haitian town's police chief to drive as she distributed
    food and toys and clothes to orphanages throughout Haiti.
        While on patrol in Port-au-Prince, Staff Sergeant Mark Maxwell and
    Sergeant Bill Fitzpatrick, now stationed here at Fort Polk, pushed
    through a crowd to find a woman lying on the ground in labor and in
    great pain. Sergeant Fitzpatrick secured the area. Staff Sergeant
    Maxwell, using his skills from the combat lifesaver course, delivered
    that woman's healthy baby boy.
        Special Forces Staff Sergeant Jorge Ramos took it upon himself to
    restore the sanitation system and public washing facilities in the town
    of Leogane. He organized local volunteers and gave a community that had
    been badly neglected one of the essentials of a decent existence. And
    out of gratitude to the sergeant and his troops, the townspeople painted
    a 4-foot-high replica of his Special Forces patch on a nearby wall.
        These are only a few of the stories of Uphold Democracy. We know
    that our success in Haiti would never have been possible without the
    strong support of the military families of Operation Uphold Democracy.
    And I would like to now say a special word of thanks to all of them. We
    Americans know that the burden of our leadership in the world weighs
    heavily on the families of men and women in uniform, here and around the
    world. We ask our troops to travel a long way from home, to be apart
    from their loved ones for long periods of time, to take on difficult and
    dangerous missions. So I thank them.
        And let me also say here publicly what I will have a chance in a few
    moments to say personally to the families of the troops in Bosnia who
    are here today, we also honor your strength and your sacrifice. You are
    giving the people of Bosnia an opportunity for peace. You are helping to
    prevent the recurrence of the most vicious bloodshed Europe has known
    since the end of World War II and to prevent a widened war which could
    have drawn in American forces in the fighting. We know it's tough for
    one parent to be left to carry all the family responsibilities, to bear
    the extra burden of running a household and raising the family. We ask a
    great deal. But time and again, America's military families deliver too.
        All of you have shown what is best about our country: the
    determination to stand up for freedom and to stand against oppression,
    the readiness to give a helping hand, to do all of that together as one
    America. I thank you for that. Your example explains why people all over

    [[Page 478]]

    the world look to America for hope and for inspiration. We can't be
    everywhere, and we can't do everything. But where we can make a
    difference and where our values and interests are at stake, we must act.
    That was the case in Haiti. You acted and acted well, above and beyond
    the call of duty.
        I congratulate you on your tremendous achievement. I thank you for a
    job well done. Your Nation is grateful and proud.
        God bless you, and God bless America.

    Note: The President spoke at 3:45 p.m. on the parade ground. In his
    remarks, he referred to Deputy Secretary of Defense John P. White; Gen.
    John J. Sheehan, USMC, Commander in Chief, Atlantic Command; Gen. John
    H. Tilelli, Jr., USA, Army Vice Chief of Staff; Gen. Henry H. Shelton,
    USAF, Commander in Chief, U.S. Special Operations Command; Adm. Paul D.
    Miller, USN (Ret.); Brig. Gen. Michael B. Sherfield, USA, Commander,
    Joint Readiness Training Center; Command Sgt. Maj. Johnny Austin, Joint
    Readiness Training Center; and Command Sgt. Maj. Jesse Laye, U.S.
    Atlantic Command.