Kathy Castor: “I rise to honor the commitment, dedication and sacrifice of the men, women and extended family of Special Operations…”

“I rise to honor the commitment, dedication and sacrifice of the men, women and extended family of Special Operations Command. Special Operations Command is located in Tampa, Florida, at MacDill Air Force Base in my district, and I am very proud to use this week, the 20th anniversary of the command's founding, to salute their service. There is little doubt that a need still exists for the well-coordinated special forces. There are just some things that conventional forces are not set up to do. Special forces have been around for centuries. But SOCOM can directly trace its roots to the Office of Strategic Services, the OSS, the intelligence agency that was formed during World War II. In many ways, Frizzell said, special operations were as much about brains and unconventional warfare in the 1940s as they are today. We recognized, Frizzell said, that we had to be flexible. We did the job that nobody else could do. So at this 20th anniversary, we salute the brave men and women who have served our country in the special operations, much of which you will never understand or know. But the American people trust in their service.”