Recognizing the service of United States Merchant Marine veterans.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 413) recognizing the service of United States Merchant Marine Veterans.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks on H. Res. 413.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, as the chairman of the Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation, I am honored to take this opportunity afforded by National Maritime Day to pay tribute to our Nation's merchant mariners and to the entire maritime industry.

I also honor the tireless work of the men and women of the United States Coast Guard, who ensure the safety and security of our Nation's ports, who protect our economic interests in the maritime environment around the world and who, every year, save the lives of thousands of mariners in distress.

In 1933, the United States first honored our merchant mariners through the designation of May 22 as National Maritime Day. Seventy- four years later, we again pause to honor the service and sacrifices of our merchant mariners by considering H. Res. 413, offered by my distinguished colleague, Congressman Bob Filner, the chairman of the Committee on Veterans' Affairs.

H. Res. 413 pays special tribute to the estimated 250,000 Americans who served in the War Shipping Administration, moving 95 percent of the goods and materiel used by the allies used during World War II.

The Congressional Research Service report said more than 50 percent of those who served in the Merchant Marine in World War II were under the age of 25, and some 20,000 of these men were killed or wounded in the war, yielding among the Merchant Marine the highest casualty rate of any service, according to the U.S. Maritime Service Veterans.

Despite their gallant service, World War II-era U.S. merchant mariners have still not received many of the benefits given to those who served in the other U.S. military forces engaged in World War II. U.S. merchant mariners have still never been made eligible for the GI Bill or for the housing, educational or unemployment benefits that the bill provided for other U.S. veterans.

Not until 1988 were World War II-era merchant mariners made eligible for services from the Veterans Administration. Not until 1998 were they made eligible for burial and cemetery benefits. While these are important benefits long overdue to World War II-era merchant mariners, many of these mariners were no longer with us when these benefits were extended. Even fewer of the World War II-era mariners are with us today. For many, therefore, any benefits granted now come too late.

Further, even for those who are still with us, it is too late to give them the opportunities that they might have had, had they been eligible for the benefits of the GI Bill at the conclusion of their service.

I urge my colleagues to take this opportunity to honor all of those who served in our Nation's Merchant Marine during World War II, and I hope that the experience of these mariners will be a lesson to ensure that we never, never again deny any veteran who has served the United States any of the benefits he or she has earned.

As I close, I also honor the vital role that our merchant mariners continue to play in responding to our Nation's emergencies. Most recently, the U.S. merchant mariners help evacuate an estimated 160,000 people from Manhattan on September 11, 2001, and provided aid and emergency assistance along the gulf coast to the victims of Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Rita.

Merchant mariners also continue to provide the sealift capacity that keeps our Armed Forces equipped to fight the global war on terrorism. More than 8,000 merchant mariners serve in the Military Sealift Command, and the Seafarers International Union has written that civilian crews and military support ships have moved some 79 million square feet of cargo to United States troops in Iraq and throughout the world since 9/11. Without these highly trained men and women, we will likely be unable to equip our Armed Forces with the supplies they need to defend our Nation.

I honor all of the members, past and present, of the United States Merchant Marine. I urge the passage of H.R. 413 and again commend my colleague, Congressman Filner, for his tireless efforts on behalf of our World War II-era merchant mariners.

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

Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the very distinguished gentleman from California (Mr. Filner). He is the author of this resolution, and, without a doubt, in this Congress, be it on whatever side, either side of the aisle, he has distinguished himself as being a fierce fighter for the rights and benefits of our veterans.

Mr. Speaker, I yield to the distinguished lady from New Hampshire (Ms. Shea-Porter) 4 minutes.

Mr. Speaker, before yielding back, I just want to associate myself with the words of Ms. Shea-Porter and Mr. Filner, and I yield back the balance of my time.

I thank the chairman not only for his kind words, but for bringing this resolution to us on National Maritime Day, and for his making the connection between what we are doing today and the historical record that we as a Nation, I think, have to recognize and correct.

This resolution, H. Res. 413, does recognize the heroic and brave service of the Merchant Marine veterans who have gone unheralded by this country for far too long. Of course, this is the best time to do this, on National Maritime Day, which was first celebrated in

1933. It is intended to recognize the invaluable role that the maritime industry in general and the Merchant Marine in particular served to our Nation's economy and to our security.

Throughout our Nation's history, the Merchant Marine has played a crucial part in ensuring our freedom and security during war and in transporting our commerce during peace.

This day was conceptualized by Franklin Delano Roosevelt, a former Assistant Secretary of the Navy, who firmly believed, as we continue to, that the Nation needed a strong Merchant Marine to serve as an auxiliary to our naval and other military forces during war. In fact, the Merchant Marine has participated in every war since serving as the Nation's first Navy, helping George Washington's Continental Army defeat the British.

After the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, 29 Merchant Marine Academy cadets operated a fleet of boats in New York Harbor, transporting the firefighters and other emergency equipment workers and medical supplies.

It is interesting to note that the United States Merchant Marine Academy is the only one of our five military academies that will send its cadets into war; and, in fact, we have lost 142 of those cadets since World War II.

Today, more than 8,000 merchant mariners serve in the Military Sealift Command, most working in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom.

I thank my colleague for bringing up the situation of our World War II veterans. As he said, it is too late to give them education benefits. But I have a bill, H.R. 23, that says we want to give you a belated thank you with a payment for the last years of their life, most of whom are over 80 right now.

During World War II, these merchant mariners traversed the dangerous U-boat-laden waters of the Atlantic and the Pacific, faced down fierce air attacks from kamikaze planes, and were instrumental in every theater of war by carrying 95 percent of all tank supplies and troops during the Great War. As a result, they suffered, as was pointed out, the highest casualty rate of any of the military branches.

It is indisputable that the allied forces would not have been able to begin, sustain, or finish World War II without their valiant and selfless service.

When I first heard of the plight of the merchant mariners of World War II, I could not believe the treatment that they have received. They did not receive any recognition as veterans that they deserved, or the benefits of the GI bill which they had earned. And their fight for equality continued for over 40 years, when they finally attained veteran status after a lengthy court battle. By then, over 125,000 of them had died.

I actually had the privilege of receiving the heart-wrenching testimony during a hearing before the Veterans' Affairs Committee from one of the named parties in that suit, in the 1980s, a merchant mariner named Stanley Willner. He was captured, interned, beaten, starved, and tortured as a POW for 3 years. He actually was one of the unfortunate group of Allied Forces who was forced to build the infamous bridge on the River Kwai.

Upon release, he weighed a mere 74 pounds. When he returned home, even his wife couldn't recognize him. Well, neither did his country. The brave merchant mariner received just 2 weeks of medical care and little else for his incredible service and sacrifice. What a travesty of justice.

Mr. Speaker, there are many more stories like this that tell about the merchant mariners of World War II, of opportunities lost and dreams foreclosed. It is long overdue that we treat these veterans the same as we try to do with all other veterans: Do our best to make them whole again.

As such, in recognition of the 74th anniversary of National Maritime Day, I invite all of the country and my colleagues to join me in recognizing the brave men and women of the sea who, like the Merchant Marine veterans of World War II, serve selflessly to ensure our Nation's continued safety and prosperity by voting in favor of this resolution, and then taking action, hopefully in a few weeks, where we give a belated ``thank you'' to the merchant mariners of World War II and pass H.R. 23.

Mr. Speaker, 189 years ago, on May 22, 1819, the steamship Savannah departed Savannah, Georgia, on the first transatlantic voyage by a steamship. This voyage demonstrated the commercial viability of

steamships and meant that commercial shipping was no longer totally dependent upon the wind.

The U.S.-flag merchant marine has continued to promote international transportation and global trade. U.S.-flag shipping companies lead the way in the invention and development of containerized shipping and the double-stacked train system. If it were not for visionaries such as Malcolm McLean, cargo would still be transported in small boxes and loaded on a ship like you see in old movies. Today's modern containership can carry over 12,000 20-foot containers, equivalent to 6,000 semi-trailer trucks on our highways.

The merchant marine has also made significant contributions to the freedom and liberty that we enjoy in the United States. Civilian mariners served gallantly during World War II transporting arms and supplies in support of our military forces. More than 700 cargo ships and 6,000 mariners died in that war. U.S. mariners have continued to service during the Korean War, the Vietnam War, the Gulf War, and now in Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom.

Mr. Speaker, President Franklin D. Roosevelt first called on Americans to commemorate National Maritime Day in 1933. Today, it is fitting that the House of Representatives recognize National Maritime Day to honor the men and women that have served our Nation in the U.S. merchant marine. They have transformed our Nation from an island nation into the hub of the world's commerce. They have shown how U.S. technology can revolutionize the world.

Yet to many Americans, maritime transportation is the invisible component of our global transportation system. People have no idea how goods manufactured in China suddenly appear on store shelves in their neighborhood. This global logistics system is now vital to the U.S. economy. U.S. manufacturers no longer have large warehouses stocked full of spare parts for their factories. They are dependent on a ``just in time'' delivery system that will supply them with the components they need within days or hours of their being assembled. If this global trade were to be shut down for a few days, store shelves would begin to become empty and factory production lines would be shut down.

I hope that in the coming year we can help Americans understand the important contributions that the U.S. merchant marine makes to all of our lives and that we develop legislation to help increase the size of the U.S.-flag fleet competing in the world trade.

Mr. Speaker, I strongly urge my colleagues to join me in supporting House Resolution 413, recognizing the service of U.S. Merchant Marine veterans today on National Maritime Day.

I thank the gentleman for bringing this to the floor.

Mr. Speaker, I, too, rise in support of recognizing what our maritime men did for us during World War II. The danger that they lived through, the sinking of their ships, the efforts to protect our other soldiers and bring supplies to them was nothing short of heroic.

When I spoke to some of these brave men, I talked about how my father had joined the Navy, and one of the reasons he liked to say was because he always was fed, and he always had ice cream. I never really thought about where all that came from.

And then I met a constituent of mine in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire, who wrote a letter to me speaking about his father who was a merchant marine and what he had been deprived of after World War II. And here is what Larry Warren had to say.

``I am writing on behalf of all World War II Merchant Marine veterans, but one in particular, my father Fred Warren of Wolfeboro. They need help.

``My father served with the Merchant Marines during World War II. His hearing is damaged from working in the engine rooms, and his lungs are damaged from the asbestos used in the construction of the merchant ships. He survived typhoons in the Pacific, German U-boats in the Atlantic, and Axis torpedo bombers in the Mediterranean. I don't know all the harrowing experiences. He doesn't talk about it.

``He was lucky to have made it home. Many didn't. The casualty rate for World War II merchant marines was one in 26, higher than any branch of the armed services. Merchant Marines fought and died with members of our Armed Forces; some were captured and held POWs. Merchant ships and the crews on them were considered expendable by the Allied leaders. Freedom is not free, and the merchant marines of World War II paid dearly.

``My father has never received help in any form from our government because merchant mariners were denied benefits under the GI bill; no low-interest loans, no unemployment pay, no free college training, no health or prescription drugs, nothing. World War II merchant mariners were not even considered veterans until an act of Congress in 1988.

``I respect all of our veterans and consider them heroes, but I am especially proud of my father. In my eyes, he is a hero, too. It is time to make amends.''

It is time to make amends. It is time to reward these men and their widows for what they have gone through. And we thank them; and there is no better way to thank them first by recognizing through this resolution, and then by recognizing them with the next bill that hopefully will pass through Congress that will provide some financial support and say to them, as we have tried to say to all veterans, ``Thank you very much for saving our country.''

Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of H. Res. 413, which recognizes the service of United States Merchant Marine Veterans. I encourage all of my colleagues to support this important resolution.

United States Merchant Mariners played a critical role during World War II, delivering troops, tanks, food, airplanes, fuel and other needed supplies to every theater of the war. The Merchant Mariners were the necessary link between the supplies that were manufactured in the U.S. and used overseas.

The Merchant Mariners took part in every invasion from Normandy to Okinawa and suffered the highest casualty rate of any of the branches of the Armed Forces. Despite their valiant service, the U.S. Merchant Marines were not included in the 1944 G.I. Bill of Rights. In 1988, they were finally granted veteran status, but some portions of the G.I. Bill have never been made available to the Merchant Marines and the lost benefits can never be recouped.

In April I had the opportunity to deliver testimony to the Veterans Affairs Committee on behalf of my constituent, World War II Merchant Marine veteran Bruce Felknor, urging support of H.R. 23, the Belated Thank You to the Merchant Mariners of World War II Act of 2007. I hope that the 110th Congress will enact that important legislation into law as well.

I'm so pleased that the Merchant Mariners are finally getting the respect and attention they deserve for their service and sacrifice to our country. For more than 40 years, their remarkable and distinguished service has gone by virtually unnoticed by our government and people.

Again, I urge all of my colleagues to support H. Res. 413.