Roy Blunt: “in the last few days, beginning on Saturday, two individuals from my congressional district gave their lives in…”

“in the last few days, beginning on Saturday, two individuals from my congressional district gave their lives in Afghanistan: one, a 34-year-old warrant officer in Special Forces; another, a 31-year-old sergeant, both of whom had clearly dedicated their lives and, in so many ways, dedicated their own families to protecting our freedoms and protecting our country. As I was thinking about what I wanted to say today about them on the House floor, I read an editorial from a Springfield, Missouri, newspaper yesterday; and I think I would like to just enter that editorial in the Record and share it today as we think about the fact that we honor these men and women and the others who are putting their lives in harm's way for us. Let me share that material with the Speaker and the Members here and then enter it fully in the Record. The editorial starts out: ``From the beginning of the war in Afghanistan, President Bush has warned Americans to be prepared for casualties. Now we have them, and the pain of this war has been felt in the Ozarks. It has taken two of our neighbors: Chief Warrant Officer Stanley Harriman. Sergeant Philip J. Svitak. {time} 1300 ``Harriman, a Strafford High School graduate, was the first American to die in the ground offensive on al Qaeda and Taliban strongholds in eastern Afghanistan. Svitak, of Joplin, was among the seven soldiers killed in incidents involving two American helicopters. ``They are not faceless casualties.…”