    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2007, Book I)]
    [May 28, 2007]
    [Pages 628-630]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Remarks at a Memorial Day Ceremony in Arlington, Virginia
    May 28, 2007

        Thank you all. Secretary England, members
    of the Cabinet, General Pace, Members of
    Congress, members of the United States military, veterans, families of
    the fallen, my fellow citizens: Welcome.
        Today we honor the warriors who fought our Nation's enemies,
    defended the cause of liberty, and gave their lives in the cause of
    freedom. We offer our love and our heartfelt compassion to the families
    who mourn them. We pray that our country may always prove worthy of the
    sacrifices they made.
        For seven generations, we have carried our fallen to these fields.
    Here rest some 360,000 Americans who died fighting to preserve the Union
    and end slavery. Here rest some 500,000 Americans who perished in two
    World Wars to conquer tyrannies and build free nations from their ruins.
    Here rest some 90,000 Americans who gave their lives to confront
    Communist aggression in places such as Korea and Vietnam.
        Many names here are known: the 18-year-old Union soldier named
    Arthur MacArthur who grabbed a falling flag and carried it up Missionary
    Ridge; the Tuskegee Airmen who defended America abroad and challenged
    prejudice at home; the slain war hero and President who asked that we
    ``assure the survival and success of liberty'' and found his rest
    beneath an eternal flame. Still others here are remembered only by
    loving families. Some are known only to God.
        Now this hallowed ground receives a new generation of heroes: men
    and women who gave their lives in places such as Kabul and Kandahar,
    Baghdad and Ramadi. Like those who came before them, they did not want
    war, but they answered the call when it came. They believed in something
    larger than themselves. They fought for our country, and our country
    unites to mourn them as one.
        We remember Army Specialist Ross Andrew McGinnis. Ross was born on
    Flag Day in 1987. When he was in kindergarten, he said he wanted to grow
    up to be ``an Army man.'' He enlisted at 17, the first day he was
    eligible. He deployed to Iraq. Last December, a grenade was thrown into
    his Humvee as Ross was patrolling the streets of Baghdad. The soldiers
    inside could not escape in time, so Ross leapt into the vehicle and
    covered the grenade with his own body. By sacrificing himself to save
    four other men, he earned a Silver Star and the eternal gratitude of the
    American people.

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        We remember Marine Sergeant Marc Golczynski of Murfreesboro,
    Tennessee. Marc volunteered for a second tour of duty in Iraq. He knew
    the dangers his service would entail. Before he deployed, he wrote the
    following in an e-mail to his family and friends: ``Please don't feel
    bad for us. We are warriors, and as warriors have done before us, we
    fight and sometimes die so our families do not have to.'' Marc left
    behind an 8-year-old son, Christian,
    who is with us today. He managed to be brave while he held his father's
    folded flag.
        With us are other children and families mourning moms and dads and
    sons and daughters. Nothing said today will ease your pain. But each of
    you need to know that your country thanks you, and we embrace you, and
    we will never forget the terrible loss you have suffered. I hope you
    find comfort in knowing that your loved ones rest in a place even more
    peaceful than the fields that surround us here.
        The greatest memorial to our fallen troops cannot be found in the
    words we say or the places we gather. The more lasting tribute is all
    around us, a country where citizens have the right to worship as they
    want, to march for what they believe, and to say what they think. These
    freedoms came at great costs, and they will survive only as long as
    there are those willing to step forward to defend them against
    determined enemies.
        As before in our history, Americans find ourselves under attack and
    underestimated. Our enemies long for our retreat. They question our
    moral purpose. They doubt our strength of will. Yet even after 5 years
    of war, our finest citizens continue to answer our enemies with courage
    and confidence. Hundreds of thousands of patriots still raise their
    hands to serve their country; tens of thousands who have seen war on the
    battlefield volunteer to reenlist. What an amazing country, to produce
    such fine citizens.
        Laura and I have met many of them. We've sat
    at the bedsides of the wounded. This morning I met with servicemembers
    who received medals for distinguished service and found myself humbled
    by their grace and their grit. I had the honor of meeting with families
    of the fallen in the Oval Office and was amazed by their strength and
    resolve and decent grace under pressure.
        We've heard of 174 marines recently--almost a quarter of a
    battalion--who asked to have their enlistments extended. For these
    extensions, they would earn no promotion and no promise of a favored
    posting. They want to serve their Nation. And as one of them put it,
    ``I'm here so our sons don't have to come and fight here someday.''
        Those who serve are not fatalists or cynics. They know that one day,
    this war will end, as all wars do. Our duty is to ensure that its
    outcome justifies the sacrifices made by those who fought and died in
    it. From their deaths must come a world where the cruel dreams of
    tyrants and terrorists are frustrated and foiled, where our Nation is
    more secure from attack, and where the gift of liberty is secured for
    millions who have never known it.
        This is our country's calling; it's our country's destiny. Americans
    set off on that voyage more than two centuries ago, confident that this
    future was within our reach, even though the shore was distant and even
    though the journey may be long. And through generations, our course has
    been secured by those who wear a uniform, secured by people who man
    their posts and do their duty. They have helped us grow stronger with
    each new sunrise.
        On this day of memory, we mourn brave citizens who laid their lives
    down for our freedom. They lived and died as Americans. May we always
    honor them, may we always embrace them, and may we always be faithful to
    who they were and what they fought for.
        Thank you for having me. May God bless you, and may God continue to
    bless our country.

    [[Page 630]]

    Note: The President spoke at 11:20 a.m. in the Amphitheater at Arlington
    National Cemetery.