Letter to Mike Pompeo, Secretary of State - Prevent Auctioning of U.S. Medal of Honor

Letter

Dear Secretary Pompeo,

I write to urge you to use the voice and influence of the United States to prevent the reported planned auctioning on May 28 of a Medal of Honor by the German auction house Hermann Historica GmbH in Munich, Germany. The medal had been awarded to Private Thomas Kelly of Company H, 21st U.S. Infantry, for gallantry in action during the Spanish-American War at Santiago, Cuba, July 1, 1898, for racing into fire to rescue and recover fellow service members.

The sale harms the dignity and honor of all recipients of the Medal of Honor. The Congress and the United States have long sought to prevent such affronts, and indeed 18 U.S. Code § 704 authorizes fines and imprisonment when those sales occur within our jurisdiction.

In this context, I urgently call on you to work with the U.S.'s foreign partners, including with officials of the Federal Republic of Germany, to ensure the sale is suspended.

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