American President Barack Obama gave the following remarks on January 28th at the
outgoing ceremony for the retirement of U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel:
THE
PRESIDENT: Good afternoon, everyone. Michelle and I, as some of you
know, just spent the past few days in India. I returned about 3 o’clock
this morning. So I don't know exactly what time it is.
Or what day it is. But I was determined to be here with you this
afternoon to honor and celebrate a great friend -- to me, and to all of
us.
In October of 1967, President Lyndon Johnson traveled to a military
base in New Mexico to review a top-secret weapons program. And he went
down to the White Sands Missile Range and out to the testing grounds.
There, out in the desert, the President watched as soldiers demonstrated
what would later become the famed Stinger missile. And one of those
soldiers was a 21-year-old private from Nebraska named Charles Timothy
Hagel.
Now, the Secret Service does not usually let me get too close to an
active weapons system. It makes them nervous. But, clearly, they did
things a little differently back in LBJ’s days. And, Chuck, I can only
assume that you were careful not to point the missile at the President
-- because what followed was a life of dedicated service to our nation
spanning nearly 50 years.
Vice President Biden, members of Congress, General Dempsey, leaders
from across this department, members of the Joint Chiefs and service
secretaries; to the men and women of the greatest military in the world
-- we gather to pay tribute to a true American patriot. And let me
assure you that I checked with the Secret Service, and Chuck will not be
demonstrating any missile launchers today.
As we all know, and we've have heard again, Chuck loves Nebraska.
The Cornhuskers. Red beer. Runzas -- I don’t know what those are, but I
hear they taste pretty good. But above all, what Chuck
loves most about his home state is the people -- his fellow
Midwesterners. There are just under 2 million people in Nebraska; there
are more than 7 billion people on the planet. But as so many of our
troops have found out themselves, no matter where Chuck goes in the
world -- if you are from Nebraska, he will find you. And
he’ll talk with you and listen to you, and ask you about your family
back home -- and chances are, he knows them, too.
So today is a celebration of a quintessentially American life -- a
man from the heartland who devoted his life to America. Just imagine, in
your mind’s eye, the defining moments of his life. The kid from
Nebraska who, as Marty said, volunteered to go to Vietnam. The soldier
outside Saigon, rushing to pull his own brother from a burning APC. The
deputy at the VA who stood up for his fellow Vietnam vets who were
exposed to Agent Orange. The senator who helped lead the fight for the
Post 9/11 GI Bill, to give this generation of heroes the same
opportunities that he had.
I asked Chuck to lead this department at a moment of profound
transition. And today we express our gratitude for the progress under
his watch. After more than 13 years, our combat mission in Afghanistan
is over, and America’s longest war has come to a responsible and
honorable end. Because of Chuck’s direction, a strategic review has
made difficult choices in a time of tight budgets, while still making
sure that our forces are ready to be called on for any contingency.
Today, our troops are supporting Afghan forces. They continue to
face risks, and they remain relentless in their pursuit of al Qaeda
networks. They’re leading the coalition to destroy ISIL -- a coalition
that includes Arab nations, in no small measure because Chuck
strengthened key partnerships in the Middle East. And under his
leadership, our forces in West Africa are helping to lead the global
fight against Ebola -- saving lives and showing American leadership at
its very, very best.
Even as we’ve met these pressing challenges, Chuck has helped us to
prepare for the century ahead. In Europe, a stronger NATO is reassuring
our allies. In the Asia Pacific -- one of my foreign policy priorities
-- Chuck helped modernize our alliances, strengthen partnerships,
bolster defense posture, improve communication between the United States
and Chinese militaries -- all of which helps to ensure that the United
States remains a strong Pacific power.
Because Chuck helped build new trust, we’ll expand our defense
cooperation with India. I just demonstrated during my visit there the
degree to which that partnership is moving in a new direction. That's
partly attributable to work that Chuck did.
And the reforms he launched will help make this department more
efficient and innovative for years to come. Thanks to Secretary Hagel’s
guiding hand, this institution is better positioned for the
future.
But, Chuck, I want to suggest today that perhaps your greatest impact
-- a legacy that will be felt for decades to come -- has been your own
example. It’s not simply that you’ve been the first enlisted combat
veteran and the first Vietnam veteran to serve as Secretary of Defense.
It’s how your life experience -- being down in the mud, feeling the
bullets fly overhead -- has allowed you to connect with our troops like
no other Secretary before you.
You’ve welcomed our junior enlisted personnel to lunch in your office
and made them feel at home, and they told you what was really on their
minds. When you spoke to our newest sergeant majors about the true
meaning of leadership and responsibility, they knew they were learning
from one of their own. And in those quiet moments, when you’ve pinned a
Purple Heart on a wounded warrior, you were there not just as a
Secretary of Defense, but as an old Army sergeant who knows the wages of
war and still carries the shrapnel in your chest.
These aren’t fleeting moments; they reflect the driving force of
Chuck Hagel’s service -- his love of our troops, and his determination
to take care of them after more than 13 years of war. Today, our
military hospitals are getting stronger, our women are more integrated
into the force than ever before. We’re making progress in combating
sexual assault. We’ll bring home the remains of fallen heroes faster,
and more Vietnam veterans will finally be eligible for the disability
pay they deserved all along. And, Chuck, that’s because of you. That’s
part of your legacy.
Of course, I’m grateful to Chuck on a very personal level. Exactly
10 years ago this month, I joined you in the United States Senate, along
with the Vice President. I was new and green; you were a veteran
legislator. I was the student, and you shared some of the lessons of
your service. I was young and you were -- well. (Laughter.) And
though we came from different parties, we often saw the world the same
way, including our conviction that even as we must never hesitate to
defend our nation, we must never rush into war. We both believed that
America should only send her sons and daughters into harm’s way when it
is absolutely necessary. And when we do, we make sure they’ve got
everything that they need to succeed; they’ve got a mission that is
worthy of their sacrifice.
In an era of politics that too often descends into spectacle, you’ve
always served with decency and dignity. And in a town of outsized egos,
you’ve never lost your Midwestern humility. You’ve always been frank
and honest and said what you thought. And I have so profoundly
benefitted from that candor. You represent a tradition of
bipartisanship in national security that we need more of today. Joe
Biden reflects that. I see Dick Lugar in the stands -- he reflects
that. That’s when we’re at our best. And from sergeant to secretary,
you’ve always been guided by one interest: what you believe is best for
America. And I thank you for your friendship and your counsel, and all
of us thank you for your character and your integrity.
Of course, nobody serves alone. Lilibet, Allyn, Ziller --thank you
for sharing your husband and father with us, and for the sacrifices that
your family has made for all of ours. And, Chuck, since our lives are
so often the reflection of those closest to us, today I also want to
acknowledge the service of your brother, Tom; the World War II service
of your father, Charles; the sacrifices of your late mom, Betty, who
worked day and night to raise her four sons. We salute this American
family.
Our men and women in uniform here today, those who stand where Chuck
once stood, they don’t ask for much. They volunteered; they accept the
risks that come with military service. But they do ask this: that this
nation take care of them as well as they’ve taken care of us; that we
provide them with the resources to do their jobs and meet the missions
that we ask of them. After all that they have given for us, after all
that they’ve sacrificed, they have the right to expect that we will meet
our obligations as well. And that’s my duty as Commander-in-Chief.
And this will be the work of my nominee to be the next Secretary of
Defense -- Mr. Ash Carter. But this must be the work of us all, as
Americans grateful to those who serve in our name. And that’s the story
of Chuck Hagel’s life.
I’ll close with a story that came about last year. I was going to
tell the story about when we were traveling in Iraq, and Chuck wore
these pair of sort of Hush Puppy bedroom slipper shoes out into the
dessert, and the flaps started opening up and his toes were sticking
out. But I’m going to skip that story. (Laughter.) He then ended up
buying me a pair -- which I have never worn, I’m proud to say.
(Laughter.)
This is a different story. One day last year I was in the Oval
Office, and Chuck came in for what I thought would be our regular weekly
meeting. But he had a guest, and he introduced us. His name was
Jerome “Skip” Johnson -- a friendly guy, a grandfather, and he was from
my hometown of Chicago. And Chuck explained that Skip -- Lieutenant
Johnson -- had been his platoon commander in Vietnam. But they had lost
touch, until Chuck tracked him down. This was the first time they had
reunited in nearly 50 years. And Chuck just wanted to bring Skip to the
Oval Office to say hello to the President -- to meet his family,
including his young grandsons.
And Chuck told me about how it had been 1968, with protests and race
riots back home, causing tensions among our troops in Vietnam. And
Chuck’s unit was mostly white, but Skip is African American, and as the
platoon’s commander he wasn’t going to tolerate any division or
distrust. And he went to his men and made himself clear: We are all
Americans. We’re going to live together. We’re going to take care of
each other. We’re fighting together. We’re going to get each other’s
backs. Let’s get it done.
And at that moment in the Oval Office, as these two soldiers stood
before me -- with Skip’s grandsons looking on -- it wasn’t lost on any
of us how far our nation has come. And I want to thank Chuck for that
moment, because part of the reason we’ve traveled that distance is we’ve
had men like Chuck Hagel serving and representing what’s best in
America.
In moments when we are tested -- as a military, as a nation --
sometimes we get distracted by what divides us and lose sight of what
unites us. And at those moments, we can draw strength from the example
of a sergeant from Nebraska and a lieutenant from Chicago. We are all
Americans. We live together. We sacrifice together. We take care of
each other. Sometimes we have to fight together.
Ladies and gentlemen, I want to introduce to you my friend, our 24th
Secretary of Defense, and an outstanding American -- Mr. Chuck Hagel.