Madeleine Bordallo: “I move to strike the last work for the purpose of entering into a colloquy with the gentleman from North Carolina…”

“I move to strike the last work for the purpose of entering into a colloquy with the gentleman from North Carolina (Chairman Taylor) regarding urgent construction and maintenance needs for the War in the Pacific National Historically Park in Guam. Mr. Chairman, my district, Guam, is home to a unique national park. The War in the Pacific National Historical Park was established by an act of Congress in 1978. It is the only site in the National Park System that honors the bravery and sacrifices of all of those who participated in the Pacific theater of World War II. Among the seven units of park and its features is a memorial wall at the Asan Bay Overlook as that preserves and honors for perpetuity the 1,642 names of Chamorro and American casualties who suffered or died during the war in Guam. The memorial wall was authorized by an act of Congress in 1993 and today is in dire need of repair and restoration. Mr. Chairman, my home island of Guam, as many of my colleagues know, is vulnerable to tropical intense weather conditions. In December of 2003, one of the most powerful typhoons to ever strike hit Guam with over 200-mile per hour wind gusts. Many elements of the park were casualties of this storm. In the aftermath of Supertyhpoon Pongsona, the service was forced to close the Park Visitors Center, which had been leased for several years and which has not yet been reopened or replaced.…”