The Passage of the Commandants - Gen. Amos takes command of the Marine Corps

India flowers for mrs. cadre a donation is in her name to the injured marine sever five on ladies and gentlemen please remain standing for honors to general Conway ladies and gentlemen now joining general Conway in the reviewing area is General James F Amos ladies and gentlemen please remain standing for the publishing of the orders and the transfer of the battle color of the Marine Corps from general Conway to general Amos assisting in the transfer of the battle color will be the sergeant major of the Marine Corps sergeant major Carlton W Kent sergeant major from the President of the United States to General James T Conway Commandant of the Marine Corps subject change of command effective 22 October 2010 you will stand detached from your present station and duties for the president Robert M gates Secretary of Defense from the President of the United States to General James F Amos United States Marine Corps subject assumption of command effective 22 October 2010 you will stand detached from your present station and duties you will proceed and report to headquarters Marine Corps the Pentagon for duty as Commandant of the United States Marine Corps for the president Robert M gates Secretary of Defense ladies and gentlemen please remain standing as we proudly render honors to the 35th Commandant of the Marine Corps General James F Amos ladies and gentlemen please be seated ladies and gentlemen the 35th Commandant of the Marine Corps General James F famous I said I was about to jump out of my skin probably an understatement secretary gates secretary Mavis thank you for being with us today we've got many distinguished visitors mr. ambassador thank you for being here today say your executive executives the Department of Defense I fellow general nostrils flag officers a roll of comedy dots that are right over here and then thank you for being a part of this today for your wise counsel over the last 90 days and I'd be remiss if I didn't acknowledge my fellow Assistant Commandant there's a warm spot in my heart for the Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps we've got a whole host of them over here on the left side and thank you for being here today we've got good friends family we've got the Carmel High School class that I graduated with where are you they're down there they come to everything good to have you here today family friends greens Prison breeds and last but not least my wife of 40 years my two children are two our daughter-in-law and son-in-law rely on our four branch over to my sister and my dad thank you for being part of this historic event in the 235 years of rich history of our beloved Corps Robert Burns made a pretty point you comment one day when he said a mark of a good speech is to have a very good beginning and a very good ending and not much in between I'm acutely aware of what my role is here today and I'm a live - Robert Byrd's expectations on this date twelve months ago on October the 22nd of 2009 we had 28,000 rates for deployed we had 6,800 interact executing the drawdown of a very successful campaign that secretary gates that our Commandant has talked about led by Major General Rick triumph they finished their mission in March and April of this year proving to the world and to the people of Iraq that al Qaeda and their extremist insurgency could be beat at the same time on the ground was Brigadier General Larry Nicholson in Afghanistan with 12,000 Marines and sailors today as we meet here there are 20,000 reason sailors and what is arguably the most dangerous part of all of Afghanistan the Helmand province led by Major General rich Mills they are at 8:30 at night as a comment on referred to they're coming in on patrols and they're going out there a happy lot we have reason for optimism as a nation with what those Marines and our soldiers and our airmen and our sailors are doing every day in every night in Afghanistan yet this past spring five thousand Marines supported five and fibia ships and sail to the aid of our southern neighbor in Haiti that earthquake stricken country that was so devastated and for 45 days those Marines and sailors transited back and forth from those seven and fibia ships providing care and sustenance for the people of Haiti less than 90 days ago a 15-3 expeditionary unit pulled off the coast of to stand to aid and assist our Pakistani brothers and sisters flying over 400 miles deep into Pakistan providing medical care transportation evacuation and just general care of the Pakistani people who were devastated by their floods the 26th Marine Expeditionary Unit sailed 30 days early so that it could so that they could go join them over off the coast of Pakistan and all the while our Harriers were flying off our big deck amphibs and they were flying combat patrols into Afghanistan in support of the joint force commander and last but not least but not least less than 40 days ago one of those shifts sailed west and recaptured the pirated ship Magellan star from the Somali pirates getting it back to its rightful owner and releasing the captive crew ladies and gentlemen in 1952 Congress wrote into their law they define the Marine Corps and one of the things they said we would always be was the most ready when the nation is the least ready some people think that strike and it's not applicable I will tell you what's happened in the last 12 months of those two hundred and two thousand Marines and those great sailors and airmen and soldiers across our nation has proven that our nation still needs a force that is the most ready when the nation is the least ready ladies and gentlemen that will be my focus or my competency for the next four years I'll bless you and thank you ladies and gentlemen please be seated the pass in review will now commence during which the United States Marine Band will perform the Armed Services medley featuring the service songs of the Army Navy Air Force and Coast Guard as well as the Marines hymn right you

Channel: Marines

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Keywords: marines, marine corps, Conway, gates, Amos, Gen. James Conway, Gen. James Amos, Sec. Robert Gates, CMC, passage of the commandants, 8th and I, marine corps battle colors, Washington, marine barracks Washington

Id: p8U_LOzzKnc

Length: 13min 17sec (797 seconds)

Published: Tue Oct 26 2010