Political Quotes

“Last year, I was privileged to lead a bipartisan delegation of 20 of our colleagues to Normandy, celebrating the 80th anniversary of the historic landing there, where American boys-- and they were boys, 17 and 18 years old--stormed the beaches of France to liberate Europe. It was one of the most moving experiences of my lifetime. I believe the Presiding Officer was there. We were part of a bipartisan group, evenly divided--10 Republicans and 10 Democrats. What we heard and saw I think will stay with us for a lifetime, particularly from the veterans who remembered that day. They are in their hundred-year-old ages of their lives. After speaking to them, we heard speeches from the President of the United States, of France, and leaders of Europe. But what stuck with me was what I heard from the veterans. One of them said to me, 'This was our moment.' We walked through the American cemetery, those silent rows of white grave markers, down to the beach, Omaha Beach, where I thought of those 18- and 20-year-old boys jumping out of landing craft with 80 pounds on their backs, into 8 feet of water, under a hail of machine gun bullets and mortar fire, onto a beach three football fields long--three football fields long--without any cover. There were no trees, there were no dunes, and the hail of gunfire and mortars kept coming. I think 90 percent died in the first wave, maybe 80 percent in the second.”