On the recordMay 17, 2012
I rise today to urge my colleagues to join me in passing a critical bill that keeps the faith with the men and women of our Reserve Forces. Representative Kline, a Republican Congressman from Minnesota, has led this effort in the House. I am leading it in the Senate. It affects troops from all over the country, a promise that was made to them that must be kept. My home State of Minnesota has no large Active-Duty bases, but we have a long and proud tradition of military service in our National Guard and our Reserves. Throughout every military engagement since the Civil War--including the two wars we have fought over the past decade--Minnesota's National Guard members and reservists have served with courage and honor to defend our Nation overseas. In fact, it was a ragtag group of workers and farmers who signed up for the precursor of the National Guard during the Civil War, who went to the Battle of Gettysburg and had the highest percentage of casualties of any unit in the Civil War. There is a big monument for them honoring the fact that they had that high rate of casualties. In fact, they held the line for troops to come in in the Civil War. The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have highlighted the importance of our brave citizen soldiers across the country and the unprecedented sacrifice they have been called upon to make. The National Guard and Reserves were not built to serve as an active-duty force for prolonged periods.…
