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Alameda, Calif.—Today, Congressman Elijah E. Cummings (D-Md.), Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation, joined Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff and Coast Guard Commandant Admiral Thad Allen for the commissioning of the USCGC BERTHOLF as the keynote speaker.
The BERTHOLF is the first of eight new national security cutters to be constructed for the Coast Guard under the Deepwater Acquisitions Program—a 25-year, $24 billion program to replace or rehabilitate all of the Service’s major air and sea vessels. The ship will be critical in providing the Coast Guard with the most advanced operational capabilities currently available, enabling them to perform all of their missions in a post-9/11 environment.
Below are the Congressman’s prepared remarks:
Prepared Remarks of
Chairman Elijah E. Cummings
Upon the Commissioning of the BERTHOLF
August 4, 2008
Thank you, Captain Wisniewski,for your kind words of introduction.
As Chairman of the Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation, I am deeply honored to join Secretary Chertoff, Admiral Allen, Vice Admiral Pekoske, Mr. Mike Petters, Mr. Fred Moosally, Captain Patrick Stadt, Command Master Chief Montague, and the crew of the BERTHOLF in commissioning this cutter today.
Earlier this summer, I had the opportunity to tour the BERTHOLF when it visited my hometown of Baltimore before beginning its transit to the West Coast.
I know first-hand that the ship we commission today will be the most capable the Coast Guard has ever sailed – one that will carry the men and women who serve on it through the eyes of countless storms and return them safely back to their families ashore.
I can also think of no better day on which to commission this vessel than today, August 4, the anniversary of the day in 1790 when Congress created the Revenue Cutter Service and approved the funding needed to build the first 10 revenue cutters.
From that year until today, the Coast Guard has been essential to ensuring the success and safety of our nation’s vital maritime commerce – and I honor the thousands of Americans who have served our nation in all of the Coast Guard’s precursor services.
Over the past 218 years, the Coast Guard’s missions have grown to encompass an awesome range of responsibilities – from rescuing those in danger at sea, to defending our homeland from hostile threats, to stewarding the natural resources of the marine environment, to responding to national emergencies.
During my tenure as Chairman, I have watched the Coast Guard continue to raise the bar of excellence by reaching new milestones during the performance of its missions.
Last year, for example, we celebrated the Coast Guard’s achievement of an impressive new record for drug seizures.
The service removed 355,755 pounds of cocaine with an estimated street value of more than $4.7 billion from circulation.
As a resident of inner city Baltimore, I truly appreciate that every ounce of illegal drugs the Coast Guard seizes at sea is an ounce that cannot reach our nation’s streets to threaten another life.
In 2007, the Coast Guard also celebrated the incredible milestone of having saved one million lives since 1790, when the Revenue Cutter Service was founded.
In fact, even before I became Chairman of the Subcommittee on Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation, I had the honor of witnessing one of the great acts of heroism in our nation’s history – and that was the rescue of the victims of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
During those terrible days in the late summer of 2005, the Coast Guard rescued more than 24,200 lives – and evacuated an additional 9,400 patients and medical personnel – from the Gulf Coast.
And again in the past two weeks, the Coast Guard has responded to another tragedy in New Orleans after a barge and tanker collided, spilling more than 400,000 gallons of oil into the Mississippi River – which is not only the source of New Orleans’ drinking water, but also a vital artery of commerce.
I commend the Coast Guard for their rapid response to contain the spill caused by this incident.
These amazing accomplishments are perhaps all the more impressive because in many cases, the Coast Guard’s achievements are made using ships that are twice as old – or older – than many of the crew members who serve on them.
Just last week, I visited Coast Guard units in North Carolina – including the crew of the cutter DILIGENCE.
As I’m sure many of you know first-hand, the differences between that ship—commissioned in 1964—and the BERTHOLF could hardly be more stark.
I am speaking not only in terms of mission capabilities but also in terms of living conditions aboard ship – which I know make a significant difference to the lives of the Coast Guardsmen and women who, over the course of their careers, spend years afloat away from their families.
I often say that the Coast Guard is our thin blue line at sea.
For too long, we have been stretching that line by placing new responsibilities on the Coast Guard faster than we have given the service new resources.
Most recently, following the 9/11 attacks, the Coast Guard’s responsibilities expanded to include significant new homeland security duties.
There has never been any doubt in my mind that the Coast Guard has the leadership, dedication, and skills to effectively fulfill these critical duties – and to balance them with the service’s traditional missions, such as marine safety and search and rescue.
As Admiral Allen has explained, the appointment of Commandant Bertholf marked a new era in the Coast Guard’s history when the Revenue Cutter Service and the Life-Saving Service were merged to form the Coast Guard.
I am hopeful that today, we are commissioning not only a new vessel but another new era, when the Coast Guard will have material assets equal to your mission needs.
The BERTHOLF is planned to be followed by seven more National Security Cutters as well as Offshore Patrol Cutters and Fast Response Cutters – all of which are being developed under the $24 billion, 25-year Deepwater procurement program.
Deepwater is essential to recapitalizing the Coast Guard with the vessels on which the service will depend for decades to come.
As Subcommittee Chairman, one of my highest priorities has been to ensure that these procurements meet all contractual obligations as well as the standards of quality and reliability that the American taxpayers rightly expect of all assets paid for with their money — and that I know the Coast Guard expects of itself in the performance of its duties.
Today, I applaud the many steps Admiral Allen has taken to strengthen all aspects of the Coast Guard’s management and operations – including its acquisitions functions.
I have the utmost confidence in Admiral Allen’s ability to pilot the Coast Guard through this time of change – and I look forward to continuing to work with him to position the Coast Guard to meet the challenges of the 21st century with a 21st century organizational structure.
I will also continue to fight in the Congress to ensure that the Coast Guard has all of the resources it needs to succeed – and I will give my full support to the effort to grow the Coast Guard to a size that is equal to the demands our nation makes of it.
To the crew of the BERTHOLF – including Captain Stadt and all of the men and women here today, I congratulate you for your selection to serve on this commissioning crew.
You have been chosen to participate in the making of history by literally sailing the Coast Guard into a new era.
You, perhaps more than anyone, understand what the addition of this vessel to the Coast Guard’s fleet truly means.
Over the past two months, you have navigated the BERTHOLF for thousands of miles – including through the Panama Canal – testing the ship’s capabilities and learning how to make it function at the peak of efficiency.
Last month in Baltimore, I had the opportunity to talk to several of you about this ship – and Captain Stadt, I can tell you that the enthusiasm of your crew for their ship is awesome and infectious.
Finally, to all of the Members of the Coast Guard here today, on behalf of the United States Congress, I express my gratitude – and the gratitude of our nation – for your service.
I honor every one of the nearly 42,000 men and women of the active duty Coast Guard – as well as the more than 8,000 members of the Coast Guard Reserve, the 30,000 members of the Coast Guard Auxiliary and the more than 7,000 civilian personnel – who together form our “Shield of Freedom,” and I wish the crew of this vessel – and every Coast Guard vessel – God speed in all their voyages.
Thank you.
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