Unanimous Consent Request--S. 1520
Floor Speech
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Ms. ERNST. Madam President, I rise again today in support of my colleague in calling for consideration of the Military Justice Improvement and Increasing Prevention Act. This is an effort whose time has come for serious debate and consideration on the Senate floor.
For 8 years, the Senate Armed Services Committee, on which Senator Gillibrand and I sit, has worked on countless efforts to seek justice for victims of sexual assault, all within the chain of command. Many of these were good provisions pushed by myself and others to reduce the barriers in reporting sexual assaults. Provisions focused on both prevention and professionalization of military courts handling sexual assault cases and efforts to improve the culture and ensure all enlistees receive sexual assault prevention training before attendance at their initial training. This is just to name a few.
What has brought me here today supporting this effort with Senator Gillibrand and Senator Grassley, with 64 cosponsors in the Senate, is that while these efforts were well-intentioned, our plague continues. That is not OK with me as a combat veteran, a former commander, and sexual assault survivor myself.
If our military is going to face the threats of the decades ahead, we will need a force that is free from the threats in its own ranks. As I mentioned, this legislation has 64 bipartisan cosponsors and more than 50 percent of committee members' support.
It is the right bill at the right time, and we must not delay any further. So I join with Senator Gillibrand in a call for consideration of this bill.
I yield back to the Senator from New York.
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Ms. ERNST. Madam President, just 1 percent of the U.S. population serves in the defense of our great Nation. America owes an immeasurable debt of gratitude to this small number of citizens who give so much to protect our freedoms and our way of life.
May is Military Appreciation Month, so on behalf of the people of Iowa and me personally, I want to thank each and every one of the women and men of our Armed Forces and their families.
We may celebrate you in May, but we appreciate you every single day. You are the ones whom we call upon to defend our Nation from our foreign adversaries and rogue actors who intend to harm us. You are the ones we called upon when COVID-19 seeped into our borders and shut down America. You stood guard to ensure our way of life succeeds. Thank you for being the greatest fighting force on the face of the planet.
After 23 years of my own military service, with great pride, I now get to watch as my daughter soon embarks on her career as an Army officer.
Libby, thank you for your willingness to serve and the sacrifices you have committed to.
While serving in the military is one of the most rewarding experiences, it is not easy. As we approach Memorial Day, we must all take time to remember the servicemembers and their families who have paid the ultimate price, laying down their lives for our great Nation.
Iowa has lost 158 of our sons and daughters in Iraq and Afghanistan, 2 in Panama or Grenada, 7 in the first Persian Gulf war, and 867 in Vietnam. Our Korean and world wars numbers were in the thousands.
While I won't be able to individually honor all of these heroes, today I would like to echo a few names in remembrance of Iowans we lost in the defense of our Nation. Honoring Our Armed Forces Gunnery Sergeant Jeffrey E. Bohr
Madam President, Marine GySgt Jeffrey E. Bohr, Jr., is from the tiny farm town of Ossian. He was 39 years old when he was killed on April 10, 2003, after a 7-hour gun battle in front of a Baghdad, Iraq, mosque.
Gunnery Sergeant Bohr served a 20-year career as an Army Ranger and then a Marine. He was assigned to 1st Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, Camp Pendleton, CA, at the time of his death. He was the first Iowan killed by enemy fire in Operation Iraqi Freedom, and he was posthumously awarded the Silver Star.
Gunnery Sergeant Bohr left behind his wife Lori, who is also a native of Iowa. Honoring Our Armed Forces Sergeant James C. Kearney III
Madam President, Army SGT James C. Kearney III--I know him as Jamie. He was an Iowa National Guardsman from Emerson, which is 10 miles from where I grew up. I knew Jamie before he enlisted in the Iowa Army National Guard. He was very excited about his enlistment, and he told me about his excitement and how he felt that he had found a place that truly rewarded him.
He was 22 years old when he died on November 1, 2004, in Salerno, Afghanistan, from injuries he sustained when his convoy was attacked by enemy forces using rocket-propelled grenades and small arms fire in Afghanistan.
Sergeant Kearney was assigned to 1st Battalion, 168th Infantry, in Glenwood, IA, at his death. He was posthumously promoted to the rank of sergeant and awarded a Bronze Star with a ``V'' device for valor. He was the first Iowan killed in Operation Enduring Freedom, and our community misses Jamie to this day. Honoring Our Armed Forces Petty Officer 2nd Class Jaime S. Jaenke
Madam President, Navy PO2 Jaime Jaenke was a naval reservist and a native of Iowa Falls. She is beautiful, isn't she? She was 30 years old when she was killed on June 5, 2006, in Al Anbar Province, Iraq, when a roadside bomb struck the Humvee that she was riding in.
She was assigned to the Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 25, based in Fort McCoy, WI, at her death. She was posthumously awarded the Navy- Marine Corps Commendation Medal with ``V'' for valor.
She left behind her daughter, Kayla. She was the first woman killed in Operation Iraqi Freedom from Iowa. Honoring Our Armed Forces Lance Corporal Adam Franklin Wolf
Madam President, LCpl Adam Franklin Wolf is from Eldon. He was 25 years old when he was killed on June 20, 2014, in Helmand Province, Afghanistan, when a vehicle-borne improvised explosive device detonated near his vehicle.
He was assigned to the 2nd Combat Engineer Battalion, 2nd Marine Division, 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force, from Camp Lejeune, NC.
He is Iowa's most recent fatality. His twin brother and family survive him. Honoring Gold Star Families
Madam President, another group of strength and resiliency I want to acknowledge today is our Gold Star families. They are the ones left behind in battle and in war. We owe it to the heroes who gave their all to protect and care for their families and their communities.
To every Gold Star family, thank you. Thank you for the sacrifices you have made and continue to make every day. I assure you, you are not alone or forgotten.
I would like to take just a brief moment of silence in honor of those we lost in combat or due to everlasting combat injuries.
Thank you.
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