250th Anniversary of the United States Marine Corps Commemorative Coin Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. MOULTON. Madam Speaker, I rise today to introduce H.R. 1096, a bill to direct the Secretary of the Treasury to mint coins commemorating the 250th anniversary of the United States Marine Corps.

This is a particular honor for me as a Marine Corps veteran myself. Serving as an infantry officer in the Iraq war, I was proud to lead some of the best Americans I have ever met--brave, selfless, honorable heroes who could have let others go in their place.

Indeed, marines are on watch tonight, standing on the ramparts of freedom around the globe so that we all can sleep softly in our beds at home.

The first time I remember meeting a marine was on my under-10 soccer field in my hometown of Marblehead, Massachusetts. Marblehead has the distinction of being the birthplace of Marine Corps Aviation because it was back in 1912 that Lieutenant Alfred Cunningham took his first solo flight out of Marblehead and became the first marine aviator.

A marine landed a Cobra helicopter on our soccer field, and I had never seen something like this before. I remember walking around this remarkable machine in awe. Then, I came up to the Marine Corps major who was the pilot, and I looked up at him and said: Wow, you are lucky to get to fly this every day. That Marine Corps major looked down at me and said: I am not lucky, kid. I am good.

Indeed, marines know that nobody cares if you are lucky or not. Marines make their own luck and have throughout history, being the first to fight in every clime and place, in battles that defined our Nation for two-and-a-half centuries: Belleau Wood in World War I, where the marines earned our reputation as Devil Dogs; the beaches of Guadalcanal and Iwo Jima in World War II; the Battle of Chosin Reservoir in the Korean war; the grueling jungles of Vietnam; and, of course, the Gulf wars, Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom.

I will never forget the bravery of the young marines that I witnessed at Abbey Gate during the final days of the Afghanistan withdrawal. After 13 American heroes lost their lives, what happened next is the definition of what it means to be a marine: Another platoon of marines went right back out to continue the mission, saving hundreds more of our Afghan allies.

Yet, the thing about the Marines is that we don't dwell on our history. We charge forward. Under the leadership of now-retired General Berger, the 38th Commandant of the Marine Corps, the force is undertaking the most aggressive modernization plan of any service in the last 50 years.

Force Design 2030 addresses everything from personnel to warships. It shifts resources from armor, artillery, and manned aircraft to invest in longer range missiles and unmanned aerial systems, better sensors and surveillance on the battlefield, and developing and retaining new cyber forces.

If we are to deter a war with China--and we must deter a war with China-- this type of forward-thinking is essential across all the services, and once again, the Marine Corps is setting the example and leading the way.

The Marine Corps is, therefore, at an inflection point, so it is particularly fitting that we have this opportunity to honor the indomitable spirit of the corps while also looking forward to its future.

Madam Speaker, I urge all of my esteemed colleagues to support this bill and to recognize the valor, bravery, and sacrifice of ``The Few, The Proud, The Marines.''

Madam Speaker, I conclude with the final verse of ``The Marines' Hymn'' If the Army and the Navy Ever look on Heaven's scenes; They will find the streets are guarded By United States Marines.

Semper Fidelis.

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