Jerry Moran: “this year, 2025, marks 50 years since the end of the Vietnam war. As we reflect, as we should reflect, on this…”

“this year, 2025, marks 50 years since the end of the Vietnam war. As we reflect, as we should reflect, on this conflict's history and the impact it had on our Nation, we should pause to recognize the service and sacrifice of the brave Americans who went halfway around the world in defense of democracy and remember those who never made the trip home. From 1955 to 1975, more than 10 million members of the U.S. Armed Forces fought to support the cause of freedom in South Vietnam. Throughout the conflict, 58,281 of those servicemembers lost their lives, more than 300,000 were wounded, and an additional 1,545 servicemembers are still missing and unaccounted for. Here in our Nation's Capital, as we know, there is a memorial dedicated to those who served in Vietnam: a wall with the name of every American soldier who made the ultimate sacrifice during their service. I was there last week with an Honor Flight of Kansans who came to pay their respects and to remember their own service. The names of 626 Kansans are on that wall, each a son, a brother, a spouse, a friend-- individuals who did not make it home. In Kansas, many communities have set up memorials to recognize their hometown heroes and hundreds of Kansans who died serving in the Vietnam war.”