Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, 100 years ago, in 1918, President Woodrow Wilson declared July 28 as a National Day of Prayer for the Serbian people. This was during World War I, the war to end all wars. American doughboys and leathernecks had arrived on the western front, holding the line against Germany's last offensive before it collapsed. Meanwhile, the Serbian people were suffering under occupation by the central powers, who had launched a brutal invasion of Serbia. Mr. Speaker, during World War I, one in four Serbian people were killed during that war. But the Serbian army had survived the invasion and was fighting alongside our allies to liberate their home. They were reinforced by many Serbian-Americans, who had returned to Europe to help their brothers. President Wilson wanted America to honor the sacrifices of the Serbian people. In a speech marking the invasion of Serbia by the central powers, he said of the Serbians: Nobly did they respond. So valiantly and courageous did they oppose the forces of a country ten times greater in population and resources. . . . While their territory has been devastated and their homes despoiled, the spirit of the Serbian people has not been broken. As a Texan, I admire such defiance against overwhelming odds. On that special day, President Wilson ordered a rare recognition to a foreign ally, by having the Serbian flag raised over the White House. That recognition had only occurred one other time in American history.…”