Merchant Marine of World War II Congressional Gold Medal Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. HUIZENGA of Michigan. Mr. Speaker, merchant mariners act as an auxiliary to the U.S. Navy and are recognized as an integral link between domestic production and forces overseas, delivering combat equipment, food, fuel, raw materials, and commodities to those stationed abroad.

Military success in World War II hinged on the merchant marine delivering these resources and provisions of transport to military and civilian personnel, sailing while exposed to enemy combatants by both air and by sea. During World War II, these merchant mariners suffered the highest per capita casualty rate of any other branch in the U.S. Armed Forces. It is estimated that hundreds of mariner ships and thousands of mariners were lost to enemy combatants as a result of their service during World War II.

Yet, Mr. Speaker, the merchant marine is rarely mentioned when people list the military branches of service during the war. I rise today to help remedy that oversight by supporting H.R. 2992, the Merchant Marine of World War II Congressional Gold Medal Act, introduced by our colleague, Representative Susan Brooks. This bill, which has 312 House cosponsors, would award a single Congressional Gold Medal to the American Merchant Marine of World War II in the recognition of their dedicated and vital service. After the medal is awarded, it will be given to the American Merchant Marine Museum, which is housed within the United States Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point, New York.

The Treasury Secretary is authorized to make and offer for sale bronze replicas of the medal at a price that will help defray the design and production costs of the actual medal. A companion bill in the Senate, S. 2989, has been introduced by Senator Lisa Murkowski.

Mr. Speaker, the merchant marine has contributed greatly to every war in which this country has been involved, beginning with the Revolutionary War and continuing right up until today. Its efforts during peacetime helped carry millions of tons of cargo and countless passengers, but the merchant marines' efforts in lightly guarded ships on the dangerous waters of the Atlantic and Pacific during the Second World War were invaluable to the overall war effort.

President Franklin Roosevelt summed it up succinctly: they delivered the goods.

Now, Mr. Speaker, it is our turn to deliver the goods for those heroes who have so often gone unnoticed. I urge immediate passage of this bill.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

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