Date: 2008-05-20
Speaker: SAM JOHNSON (republican)
Chamber: H
State: Texas

Mr. Speaker. I rise to thank Republican Leader BOEHNER for his efforts to recognize the prisoners of war in Vietnam and those of us who are marking 35 years of freedom. As a former prisoner of war for nearly 7 years. more than half of that time in solitary confinement. I find great comfort that Americans support our troops 110 percent. Trust me when I say it makes a tremendous difference to return to your country with a warm welcome and homecoming party versus people spitting on you or worse. Thankfully. America does not have hundreds of men and women held captive as prisoners of war like Vietnam. For this. I can only say. "Praise the Lord. " You know. celebrating a milestone of liberty like 35 years of freedom really puts life in perspective. I have thought about what my battered body felt like before the years of endless torture and extreme starvation. and I thank my loyal wife and family for sticking by me when I was gone. I also recall the highcaliber Americans held captive with me in Vietnam. By Christmas 1970. my captors ended my solitary confinement after 31/2 years and placed me in a huge room full of American heroes. the Hanoi Hilton. now known as the "Incredible Room Seven." The roster of Room Seven included 47 great Americans who spent a combined 108.116 days in captivity. * That translates into just under 300 man hours gone. As for me. I spent just under 2.500 days as a POW. and you can Google "Incredible Room Seven" to learn about the amazing list. of war heroes I have the honor of calling friends. one of whom is JOHN MCCAIN. While held in captivity. most of us agreed that when. not if. we returned home to America. we would quit complaining about the government and do something about it. Some of us ran for office. I served in the Texas State House and now in the U.S. Congress. Jeremiah Denton. who blinked the letters "torture" in Morse code while reading a prepared message from the enemy into a video camera. became a U.S. Senator from Alabama. JOHN MCCAIN served in the House and then in the Senate. Clearly. the thread of public service in Room Seven extended well beyond the military code of conduct. I mention my 7 years in captivity for another reason as well. Today. for just about the last 7 years. our troops and their families have put their lives on the line. and many times on hold. to defend the freedom of this great Nation. The Nation has troops waging two different battles in two separate -remote parts of the world. and our servicemen and women continue to stand up and be counted. Our troops have done an exceptional job. We all hope and pray they come home soon and safely when the time is right. I would like to close today by dedicating this statement to a dear friend of mine who did not make it home from captivity. Ron Storz. The enemy held me in solitary confinement in a place we POWs named Alcatraz. There were 11 of us held alone in small 3foot by 8foot cells. each one adjacent to another. Being the ingenious American servicemen we were. we could communicate with our fellow POWs by tapping on the walls. Of the 11 of us held in solitary cells. only 10 made it home. The North Vietnamese killed my friend Ron Storz. an Air Force captain. after he rebelled and wtnt on a hunger strike to protest our harsh conditions. Ron Storz carried the banner of valor and heroism. This resolution includes him. too. and it includes all Americans. All I want to say is God bless America. and today I salute all exPOWs. Thank you for bringing this measure to the floor. I salute you. Li 1145