May 15, 1996 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD Ð HOUSE H5143 see tax relief. And just the average have 5 legislative days within which to is the entire history of this world. With mom and dad want to see tax relief so revise and extend their remarks and in- the aid of some 500 transport aircraft they can take the kids to school, get to clude extraneous material on this spe- and 500 bombers and fighters, the ini- work, get to the grocery store, get to cial order observing the 55th anniver- tial wave of paratroopers, which num- little league, and do all the important sary of the Battle of Crete. bered about 3,500, suffered great casual- things that are important in their life. The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there ties at the hands of Crete's ground I believe, yes, that the best way to objection to the request of the gen- forces. These ground forces, of course, lower gas prices and relieve not only tleman from Pennsylvania? included heroic Cretan civilians who the central coast of California gas There was no objection. used knives and pitchforks and sickles pains, but our Nation's gas pains, is to Mr. KLINK. Mr. Speaker, it is late, in their hands, and sticks and rocks, as repeal the Clinton gas tax. It is time. It and many Members have not been able some of their only weapons. is time we let working men and women to join us tonight who had planned to The valiant Allied forces were even- keep more of their hard-earned dollars, make statements. They will put their tually forced to retreat, but the battle and not have the bureaucrats here in statements in the RECORD. I am sure lasted 11 days before the Germans Washington say that they know best that will not be of distress to the could declare a victory, and it resulted how to spend those hard-earned dollars. Speaker, that we will not go as long as in over 6,000 German troops listed as Mr. Speaker, since its imposition in had been intended. killed, wounded or missing in action. October of 1993, the gas tax has taken Mr. Speaker, I do rise today to mark The losses to the elite 7th parachute $613 million out of the economy. That the 55th anniversary of the Battle of division were felt so hard by the Ger- is money that Californians could have Crete. This is really an historic event. man military and were of such signifi- had. Repealing the gas tax also would It is of great significance. It took place cance that no large-scale airborne op- reduce taxes, as I said earlier before, by on the Island of Crete during World eration was ever attempted by Nazi almost $5 billion annually. And I want War II. This was between Nazi forces Germany again for the remainder of to repeat this number, it would reduce and the people of Crete who were as- the war. After the Allied retreat, the people of taxes in California by $550 million. A sisted by the allied armies. Crete were left to fend for themselves. repeal of the gas tax, I am summariz- I would like to rise today also to rec- The Cretan resistance movement orga- ing here if you notice, the repeal of the ognize the heroic efforts of the people nized in an effort to thwart the Ger- gas tax would recoup the jobs most to of Crete that were exhibited not only man Nazi forces. For 4 years the resist- the tax increase. If you recall, I said we during the battle itself, but during the ance movement on Crete inflicted very lost 8,000 jobs in California, and I want subsequent 4-year occupation of Crete heavy casualties on the Nazi army. At to work for those 8,000 jobs, get them by Nazi forces. one point the Cretan forces even kid- back, and I am going to work for the At the outset of the war, Adolf Hitler napped a heavily guarded German gen- 69,000 jobs that we lost nationwide. had not intended to invade the Island eral. The Democrats love big government. of Crete. It was when Italian forces The struggle undertaken by the Cre- They are so wedded to the old status were unable to overtake the Greek tan civilians became an example for all quo that they are willing to deny forces on the Greek mainland that Hit- Europe to follow in defying German oc- American families, including those on ler decided he would assist. Soon after cupation and aggression. The price paid the central coast of California, an an- Greece fell to German forces, Hitler for the Cretans' valiant resistance to nual $48 tax break. I think you all was convinced by others to make Crete Nazi forces became that of thousands would remember that last year, or I his next target. of lives of civilians who died from ran- should say last election, we heard slo- Let me just talk a moment about the dom executions, some who died from gans like ``It is the economy, stupid.'' significance of the Island of Crete. It is starvation, others by imprisonment. Well, I guess that if there was a slogan the largest of the Greek islands, about Entire communities were burned and to be had this election time, we should 160 miles long. It varies in its width were destroyed by the Germans as a re- remind people that it is the paycheck, from about 7.5 miles to 35 miles. At the prisal for the Cretan resistance move- stupid. The folks need to see more of outbreak of World War II, Crete lay at ment. Yet the battle of Crete, in part, the dollars kept in their paycheck and a very strategic position for both the was to change the final outcome of spend those hard-earned dollars as they Allies and the Axis powers. For the World War II. best decide. British, who controlled the island at A direct result of this battle was a I would say, let the bureaucrats here the time, Crete was a very strong point delay in Hitler's plans to invade Rus- decide how they are going to tighten on the lifeline to India. It protected sia. Originally Hitler had planned to their belts, and put their agency and both Palestine and Egypt, and they had move on Russia in April of 1941. But their particular program on a diet. I assigned elements of the Royal Navy to Hitler was not able to move his forces would rather have the folks on Capitol be sheltered in the great natural har- on Russia until June because of the Hill here in the bureaucracies decide bor of Suda Bay. time that was lost as the valiant peo- how to tighten the belt, rather then my But despite its importance, the Brit- ple of Crete had fought off the Third folks on the central coast of California. ish maintained only a small garrison Reich. The consequences of this 2- f there. At the time of the outbreak of month delay was Hitler's forces facing this war, it consisted of only three in- the harsh Russian winter. And while ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE SPEAKER fantry battalions, armed with several Nazi forces were able to penetrate into PRO TEMPORE heavy and light antiaircraft guns. They Russian territory, the snow storms and The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. had coast defense artillery and search- the sub zero temperatures eventually NEY). The Chair will remind Members lights. But sensing a coming Axis at- stalled them before they could over- to refrain from quoting individual tack, they began to reinforce Crete take Moscow or Leningrad. This Members of the Senate. with men and supplies. marked the beginning of the end of the f b Hitler war machine. 2100 As is so often the case in history, the 55TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE But it was, in fact, too late. Because battle of Crete was not the first time a BATTLE OF CRETE of the persistent attacks by the Ger- small force of Greeks fought against The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under man Luftwaffe, they could send only a overwhelming odds. Dr. George C. the Speaker's announced policy of May few thousand tons of supply to the is- Kiriakopoulos, a noted author and pro- 12, 1995, the gentleman from Penn- land. And so it was on May 1941 that fessor at Columbia University, has sylvania [Mr. KLINK] is recognized for Adolf Hitler turned his attention to the compared the battle of Crete to the an- 60 minutes as the designee of the mi- Island of Crete. cient battle of Thermopylae. nority leader. Hitler's elite 7th parachute division Thermopylae, which is a very narrow GENERAL LEAVE began operation Mercury. At the time passageway located in east central Mr. KLINK. Mr. Speaker, I ask unan- this was the largest airborne invasion Greece, was the site where King Leoni- imous consent that all Members may to that point in our entire history, that das and his 300 Spartans made their H5144 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD Ð HOUSE May 15, 1996 final stand against King Xerxes and his 40th anniversary, 15 years ago, or that When the 7th Parachute DivisionÐ Persian army of 200,000 men. anniversary week, and I had not real- and you have to remember, again, this Although King Leonidas' forces were ized that at two of the major air fields was the largest airborne invasion in defeated by the Persians, they defended that German airborne were totally re- the history of the world at that time.