Coronavirus

Floor Speech

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Mr. BLUMENTHAL. Mr. President, I am proud to follow my colleagues who have spoken on the floor, particularly Senators Carper and Duckworth, and to join them today, for they are in the great tradition of this body--Bob Dole, Daniel Inouye, Tammy Duckworth, Tom Carper, and John McCain. We have known our share of heroes, and I am here to say thank you to them and to the others among us who have served.

I am proud to be here as a dad of two veterans--one a combat infantry officer in the Marine Corps, another a special operator in the Navy. Both are deployed. I myself served in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve. I am here to say to the other moms and dads and loved ones that Donald Trump does not speak for me; that Donald Trump does not speak for us; and that Donald Trump does not speak for America.

When he called those brave heroes who laid down their lives ``suckers'' or ``losers,'' my first reaction was disbelief. Then, in an instant, it was totally to believe that he had said it because it was so much in character for Donald Trump. For him, it is all about Donald Trump. If somebody else can serve and take his place without there being sacrifice on his part, so much the better. Donald Trump does not speak for the America I know and love or for those who have given of themselves or risked their lives, like my colleagues who have spoken today.

When Donald Trump talked about the heroes of Belleau Wood, he could have used a history lesson because, clearly, the marines at Belleau Wood were not suckers. In fact, the relentless tenacity of their fighting earned them a nickname from the German soldiers who were their adversaries. The Germans called them ``Teufelshunde,'' meaning ``devil dog.'' This proud moniker has stuck with them all of these years, and they use it when addressing each other--``devil dog.'' That is what they were.

One of their commanding officers, Maj. Thomas Holcomb, wrote a letter to his wife 2 days into battle, which reads:

The regiment has carried itself with undying glory, but the price was heavy. . . . There never was such self-sacrifice, courage, and spirit shown.

In the 3 weeks of fighting, the 4th Marine Expeditionary Brigade suffered a 55-percent casualty rate--55 percent. His battalion alone suffered 764 casualties out of 900 men. He became the 17th Commandant of the Marine Corps and Belleau Wood became part of Marine Corps history. That battle was one of hundreds, even thousands of battles, where soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines distinguished themselves with uncommon valor. For every Belleau Wood, there are other battles for each of those services. None of them fought like suckers or losers.

The cost of war is unspeakably high, and we know that from our own work on the Armed Services Committee and on the Veterans' Affairs Committee. I had just come from a hearing of the Veterans' Affairs Committee where we were discussing the problem of veteran suicide. Twenty of our heroes take their own lives every day. Yet we in this body have failed to provide effective solutions to those invisible wounds that caused those deaths. That is a national disgrace.

So, to the loved ones of those who have risked and given their lives, we are here to make a point. This resolution makes that point eloquently and powerfully. Donald Trump speaks for no one in this body, as far as I know, and it is a shame that our Republican colleagues are literally absent. They are absent without leave. They are AWOL from this moment in history that calls upon them to stand up and be heard in the name of our Nation's heroes. Thank you.

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