Floyd Spence: “It saddens me deeply to speak of the passing of our good friend and colleague, Herb Bateman. I have known him for a long…”

“It saddens me deeply to speak of the passing of our good friend and colleague, Herb Bateman. I have known him for a long time, he and his wife, Laura. We have traveled to many places together, experienced many things together. He meant a lot to me personally and to this Nation. Our Nation has lost a respected legislator and a stalwart defender of the men and women of our Armed Forces. During Herb's time in the Congress, he devoted his full time and energy to addressing the needs of the United States military. Without exception, his actions always reflected his sense of duty to the United States and to our Armed Forces. When I became Chairman of the Committee on Armed Services, one of the first acts on my part was to ask Herb to chair the Subcommittee on Military Readiness, and also a panel concerning our sea power. Under his leadership, the Subcommittee on Military Readiness has addressed countless difficult issues, including the declining state of the United States military readiness.”