WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar issued the following statement on Memorial Day:
“On this Memorial Day, Minnesotans and Americans across the country are coming together to honor the brave men and women who lost their lives serving our great nation.
“Nothing is more honorable than giving your life for the country you love. No sacrifice is greater, no act more worthy of our respect and gratitude. And so it is with humble hearts that we join together to remember these selfless men and women.
“On this day we also remember the families of our troops: The husbands and wives, moms and dads, sons and daughters. In many ways, these are the people who have given the most to our country. Only instead of giving a life or a limb, they have given their hearts, in the form of their best friends and biggest fans.
“In Minnesota, we know what it means to love our country: It means being willing to risk everything you have to defend what it stands for. From those 250 Minnesotans who held the line against 1,600 Confederate troops at the Battle of Gettysburg, to the Red Bulls of the 134th Brigade Combat Team who served the longest single deployment of any unit in the Iraq War in 2007, to the Bulldogs of the 148th Fighter Wing in Duluth who won the prestigious Raytheon Cup as the most outstanding unit in the Air Force – the men and women of our state have found within themselves a duty to serve. And just as they have done right by us, we have a duty to do right by them.
“That’s why this past week I introduced legislation to ensure our veterans have continued access to the health care benefits they’ve earned, as well as a bill to help more returning troops transition the skills they learned on the battlefield into good paying jobs here at home.
“There wasn’t a waiting line when these brave Americans signed up to serve, and there shouldn’t be a waiting line when they come home—not for a home or an education or health care or a job.
“Not many things in this world are lasting. But the people who fought and died for our country have left an enduring mark—a living legacy that continues in the freedoms we cherish, the values we stand for and the men and women who still fight for them.
“On this Memorial Day and every day, we remember the brave men and women who made the ultimate sacrifice so that we could live free. We owe them a debt that can never be repaid. So instead, we thank them, we honor them and we salute them.”
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