Honoring Our Veterans -- Veterans Day

Floor Speech

HONORING OUR VETERANS--VETERANS DAY -- (House of Representatives - November 08, 2007)

The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the gentlewoman from North Carolina (Ms. Foxx) is recognized for 5 minutes.

Ms. FOXX. Mr. Speaker, this coming week we will celebrate Veterans Day. As we remember the many who have given their lives in service to our Nation, I hope we pause not only to honor their memory, but also to express our gratitude for that which their sacrifices have secured.

The many American veterans that we honor today are a reflection of American greatness. The men and women of our Armed Forces throughout our Nation's history have not hesitated to make tremendous personal sacrifices for the cause of freedom. If it were not for our brave and selfless veterans, we would be a land of fewer freedoms and smaller liberties.

Throughout our history, our veterans have gone to foreign shores to fight the forces of injustice and tyranny. Today, many live in freedom thanks to their great sacrifices.

Our veterans are the first and the finest example of the American hero. They have preserved our peace and they have held back the tide of darkness when the call has sounded to protect our liberty. And these men and women have done and continue to do these things with a sense of duty that has never shirked the great sacrifices, but instead, upholds the mantle of democracy with strength and pride.

On Veterans Day, we rightly single out the members of our Armed Forces, past and present, and give them the honor that they do not ask for, but that they so richly deserve.

I do not say this lightly, that our veterans are the primary forces that keep and have kept the vision of America alive throughout the centuries. Ours is a vision of freedom for all, a vision of a land where any man or woman can breathe free and lay hold of prosperity, secure in the knowledge that their brave and selfless soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen and coast guardsmen have proven that our cause is worthy of the most profound of sacrifices.

We must not take our freedoms lightly. They have been purchased with the blood and sacrifice of many patriots. These patriots have answered the call to service, knowing that a life without liberty is hardly worth living.

They've shown us that our freedoms are invaluable and priceless beyond the paltry dividends of a life under the shadow of tyranny or fear or repression.

We have much to be grateful for in this Nation. Our freedoms are many and our sacrifices are few in comparison to what our veterans willingly give up. And these sacrifices are made on our behalf so that we might enjoy a liberty that is unrivaled throughout human history.

It is therefore a tremendous pleasure to honor the men and women who saw the value of freedom and grasped the threat of tyranny and did not shrink into the twilight. As Thomas Paine said of our freedom on the eve of the American Revolution: ``The sun never shined on a cause of greater worth.''

I thank our veterans for recognizing this cause and rising to its defense with unfailing strength. Our gratitude is tribute to your great bravery and profound sacrifice.

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