J.C. Watts: “Sam Johnson is my hero and today politicians give out that honor much too easily. But Sam Johnson is a real hero in…”

“Sam Johnson is my hero and today politicians give out that honor much too easily. But Sam Johnson is a real hero in every sense of the word. There are few Members of this House who have given so much of themselves to this country and we have heard about that today. Few have earned the right to be called a patriot. He has answered every call to serve this country, in wartime and in peace. He has been a warrior and a public servant, and on both occasions he has fought for the same cause: freedom at home and abroad. Mr. Speaker, when the United States asked Sam to serve to battle communism in Asia, he did not hesitate. He was in the Air Force for 29 years. He was a hero in Korea and then served again in Vietnam, as we have heard about. On that day in 1966 when his F-4 was shot down over North Vietnam, an event occurred that would change his life forever, serving 7 years as a prisoner of war, three of them in solitary confinement because he would never allow the torture to break his will, his love of America and his faith in God.”