Statements on Introduced Bills and Joint Resolutions

STATEMENTS ON INTRODUCED BILLS AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS

By Mr. BINGAMAN (for himself, Mr. INHOFE, Ms. LANDRIEU, and Mr. LUGAR):

S. 2262. A bill to provide for the establishment of campaign medals to be awarded to members of the Armed Forces who participate in Operation Enduring Freedom or Operation Iraqi Freedom; to the Committee on Armed Services.

Mr. BINGAMAN. Mr. President, I rise today with my colleagues, Senators INHOFE, LANDRIEU, LUGAR, and LOTT, to introduce a bill to honor our service men and women in Iraq and Afghanistan who have served and continue to serve their country by working for a free, independent, and stable Iraq and a new Afghanistan. These missions have been difficult and the cost has been high; nearly 600 Americans have been killed and almost 3,000 Americans have been injured in Iraq, while more than 500 Americans have been injured and more than 100 U.S. service men and women have been lost in Afghanistan.

More than a year after the initial invasion, nearly 110,000 troops are still stationed in Iraq, working to build a new, stable beacon of freedom in the region. My fellow Senators, the liberation of Iraq is turning out to be the most significant military occupation and reconstruction effort since the end of World War II. We cannot understate the importance of the work being done there today.

The administration's focus on Iraq leaves the mission in Afghanistan incomplete. Despite constant progress there, the fighting is still not over. Recent assassinations of government officials, car bombings, and the lingering presence of terrorist forces and former Taliban fighters force thousands of our troops to stay in-country.

For there courageous efforts, the Department of Defense has decided to award our brave young men and women with the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, GWOT, and no other medal. This is despite the fact the GWOT medal is meant for any individual who has served overseas during the war on terror and may have come within a few hundred miles of a combat zone. The dangers of serving in Iraq and Afghanistan are greater; therefore, along with my colleagues, Senators LOTT, LANDRIEU, INHOFE, and LUGAR, I propose to correct this mistake by passing legislation authorizing the Iraq and Afghanistan Liberation Medals in addition to the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal.

While some of us in this body have not shared the administration's view on this war, we are united when it comes to supporting our troops. These young men and women from Active Duty, National Guard, and Reserves are all volunteers and exemplify the very essence of what it means to be a patriot. We believe that what they are doing in Iraq and Afghanistan today differs from military expeditionary activities such as peacekeeping operations or no-fly-zone enforcement.

They continue to serve, even though they do not know when they will return home to family and friends. They continue to serve despite the constant threat to their lives and the tremendous hardships they face.

There is a difference between an expeditionary medal and a campaign medal. We only need to look at an excerpt from U.S. Army Qualifications for the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal and Kosovo Campaign Medal. In order to receive the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, you don't need to go to war. You only need to be "placed in such a position that in the opinion of the Joint Chief of Staff, hostile action by foreign armed forces was imminent even though it does not materialize."

To earn the Kosovo Campaign Medal, the standard is higher. A military member must:

Be engaged in actual combat, or duty that is equally hazardous as combat duty, during the Operation with armed opposition regardless of time in the Area of Engagement. Or while participating in the Operation, regardless of time, [the service member] is wounded or injured and required medical evacuation from the Area of Engagement.

Many within the military agree that there is a difference. According to the Army Times, "Campaign medals help establish an immediate rapport with individuals checking into a unit." An expeditionary medal like the GWOT does not necessarily denote combat. A campaign medal is designed to recognize military personnel who have risked their lives in combat.

Campaign medals matter. "When a Marine shows up at a new duty station, commanders look first at his decorations and his physical fitness score-the first to see where he's been, the second to see if he can hang. They show what you've done and how serious you are," said GySgt James Cuneo. "If you're a good Marine, people are going to award you when it comes time. . . ."

My fellow colleagues, it is time. We must recognize the sacrifice of our young men and women who liberated Iraq, including great Americans like Army SPC Joseph Hudson from Alamogordo, NM, who was held as a prisoner of war. The Nation was captivated as we watched Specialist Hudson being interrogated by the enemy. Asked to divulge his military occupation, Specialist Hudson stared defiantly into the camera and said, "I follow orders." Those of us with sons and daughters were united in worry with Specialist Hudson's family. The entire Nation rejoiced when he was liberated.

We have also asked much from our Reserve and National Guard Forces. The reconstruction of Iraq would not be possible without the commitment and sacrifice of the 170,000 guardsmen and reservists currently on active duty.

My colleagues, Senators LOTT, LANDRIEU, INHOFE, LUGAR, and I are committed to honoring our over 200,000 heroes who liberated Iraq and Afghanistan. We believe that current administration policy does a disservice to our fighting men and women. Therefore we propose, in addition to the GWOT medal, new decorations that characterize the real missions in Iraq and Afghanistan, two that are distinctive and honor their sacrifice, the Iraq and Afghanistan Liberation Medals.

What we do today is not without precedent; Congress has been responsible for recognizing the sacrifice and courage of our military forces throughout history. Congress has had a significant and historically central role in authorizing military decoration. Our Nation's highest military decorations were authorized by Congress, including: the Medal of Honor, the Air Force Cross, the Navy Cross, the Army's Distinctive Service Cross, the Silver Star, and the Distinguished Flying Cross.

We have also authorized campaign and liberation medals similar to what we hope to accomplish with this legislation. A partial list includes the Spanish War Service Medal, the Army Occupation of Germany Medal, the World War II Victory Medal, the Berlin Airlift Medal, the Korean Service Medal, and the Prisoner of War Medal.

The list goes on and on. The great men and women of our military forces are doing their jobs every day in Iraq and Afghanistan. It is time to do our job and honor them with an award that truly stands for their heroic service, the Iraq and Afghanistan Liberation Medals.

I ask unanimous consent that an article from the Army Times and the text of the bill be printed in the RECORD.

There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in the RECORD, as follows:

[From the Army Times, Mar. 15, 2004]

HILL SET TO CHALLENGE PENTAGON ON TERROR-WAR MEDAL

(By Rick Maze)

The Pentagon's determination to award a single campaign medal for the entire global war on terrorism will come under fire Wednesday when the House Armed Services Committee is expected to pass a bill ordering creation of separate campaign medals for combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. This is a bipartisan bill, first introduced in September, with 84 cosponsors. It is expected to pass the committee Wednesday with little or no discussion, but the next step is unclear, House aides said. The Defense Department has stood firm in the face of complaints about having a single Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal instead of separate campaign medals, and is likely to lean on House Republican leaders to prevent passage of the bill, aides said. "Passing the committee isn't a problem. Getting the bill scheduled for a vote in the House of Representatives could be a lot tougher," said one Republican aide. Exactly who would get the campaign medals would be left to the Pentagon to determine. The bill, HR 3104, only orders the medals to be established and leaves eligibility rules to the military. Passage by the full House still wouldn't ensure the separate medals would ever be issued. The Senate debated the issue last year and by a 48-47 vote ended up siding with the Pentagon. Defense officials have argued that a single medal treats all deployments for the war on terrorism equally, whether the operations are in Iraq, Afghanistan, Africa, Colombia or the Philippines. The chief cosponsors of the House bill are all Vietnam veterans who serve on the armed services committee: Vic Snyder, D-Ark., a former Marine, and Army veterans Rob Simmons, R-Conn., and Silvestre Reyes, D-Texas. Snyder, the chief sponsor, said his combat experience is part of the reason why he is pushing for separate campaign medals. "I know the incredible pride and sense of accomplishment our military personnel feel about how well they have done in our most recent wars," he said. "In past wars, millions of soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines have received combat medals that have held intense meaning for them," Reyes added. "Soldiers who fought and are fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan deserve a medal of equal significance." "As a Vietnam veteran and reservist, I am proud of the sacrifices made by our military men and women," said Simmons, who remained in the Army Reserve after his combat experience and retired from the military in 2000. "Whatever one thinks about the war on terror, our service men and women did what their country asked of them and did it very well. Congress should recognize these accomplishments." In addition to the campaign medal bill, the House Armed Services Committee is scheduled to take up three other measures on Wednesday. One bill would order the reimbursement of travel expenses for service members who used the Central Command's rest and recuperative leave program in its early stages last fall, a measure passed by the Senate last week. Also planned are votes on a bill attempting to expand access for military recruiters to college campuses and a non-binding resolution asking the Defense Department, banks and credit unions and the Federal Trade commission to all work to reduce the financial hardships of mobilized reservists. The planned markup is unusual because the House Armed Services Committee normally would wrap such bills into the larger defense authorization bill it approves each year. Aides who spoke on the condition of not being identified said there are two reasons for breaking with tradition to pass separate bills. One is that lawmakers want to move quickly on some issues, like R&R travel reimbursement, which have already been completed. The second reason is that House Republican leaders have been pleading with committees to have some bills ready for debate and passage on the House floor. The legislative calendar already is light because of the upcoming elections, aides said. Delays in House floor debate on the 2005 budget resolution, due to problems getting a consensus among Republicans about budget priorities, has left a big hole in the legislative schedule that House leaders would like to fill, aides said.

S. 2262

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. MILITARY CAMPAIGN MEDALS TO RECOGNIZE SERVICE IN OPERATION ENDURING FREEDOM AND OPERATION IRAQI FREEDOM.

(a) REQUIREMENT.-The President shall establish a campaign medal specifically to recognize service by members of the Armed Forces in Operation Enduring Freedom and a separate campaign medal specifically to recognize service by members of the Armed Forces in Operation Iraqi Freedom.

(b) ELIGIBILITY.-Subject to such limitations as may be prescribed by the President, eligibility for a campaign medal established pursuant to subsection (a) shall be set forth in uniform regulations to be prescribed by the Secretaries of the military departments and approved by the Secretary of Defense or in regulations to be prescribed by the Secretary of Homeland Security with respect to the Coast Guard when it is not operating as a service in the Navy.