Medal Shortage. There have been two Medals of Honor awarded since the Iraq war began. What gives?

Feb. 2, 2007 - Circulating somewhere in the Pentagon is a list of dozens of soldiers and Marines who committed acts of supreme valor during the war in Iraq. One serviceman, for example, charged a row of Republican Guards under fire, killing 20 enemy soldiers. At least three others jumped on grenades to save their brothers. Yet relatively few medals have been issued in the 4-year-old war. The Medal of Honor, for instance, the highest citation a soldier or Marine can receive, has been handed out only twice since the war began, both times posthumously. By comparison, the military gave 245 Medals of Honor to combatants in Vietnam and 464 to veterans of World War II. Lesser medals, like the Distinguished Service Cross, have also been hard to come by for Iraq servicemen.

One explanation offered by Pentagon officials has to do with the chaotic nature of the war in Iraq. With troops facing shadowy enemies in an urban environment, it can take months or years to investigate individual battles and determine whether soldiers are eligible for medals. Some analysts believe the fact that America’s posture in Iraq is mainly defensive—soldiers spend more time protecting themselves than capturing the next hill or neighborhood—tends to beget fewer medals. Still, criticism over the scant number of medals awarded led the Pentagon to review the citation process; findings are expected in the coming week. One of the most vocal critics has been Joseph Kinney, a 57-year-old Vietnam veteran from North Carolina, who says the dearth of medals has a demoralizing effect. Kinney, who has testified before Congress on the issue, spoke with NEWSWEEK’s Dan Ephron.

FWIW, it took 37 years for Rocky Versace to be awarded the Medal of Honor.

"In a quiet, dignified ceremony on 8 Jul 2002, more than 27 years after the evacuation of the U.S. Embassy in Saigon on the night of 2930 Apr 1975, President George W. Bush presented the Medal of Honor to Humbert Roque Versace for his bravery as a prisoner of war prior to his execution by the Viet Cong on 26 Sep 1965. Rockys brother Steve accepted the award on behalf of the Versace family. Since 1969, when Nick Rowe 60 escaped from his Viet Cong captors and related the story of Rockys bravery in captivity and recommended him for the Medal of Honor (downgraded to a Silver Star in 1971), Rockys friends and family have sought to have his uncommon valor in captivity recognized."

http://www.medalofhonor.com/RockyVersace.htm

Congressional Medal of Honor Recipients Recommendation Process Receiving the Medal of Honor is the highest honor bestowed by the American Military and personally presented by the President of the United States. Because of the need for accuracy the recommendation process can take in excess of 18 months with intense scrutiny every step of the way. The following charts demonstrate this process.

The following organizations and individuals play key roles in the Army Medal of Honor recommendation process: CHAIN OF COMMAND Submits award recommendation that meets the two year submission time limit to Department of the Army Personnel Command MEMBER OF CONGRESS Submits award recommendation that is outside the two year limit for submission to Department of the Army Personnel Command or the Secretary of the Army who forwards request to Personnel Command. DEPARTMENT OF THE ARMY PERSONNEL COMMAND Army Decoration Board - Merit Review, can disprove based on criteria (Cdr, HRC can overrule) Senior Army Decorations Board - Recommends approval, disapproval, or downgrade. MANPOWER AND RESERVE AFFAIRS Concurs or nonconcurs with Board recommendation CHIEF OF STAFF OF THE ARMY Concurs or nonconcurs with Board recommendation SECRETARY OF THE ARMY Recommends approval or can disapprove. Also forwards packet to Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff for comment. SECRETARY OF DEFENSE Recommends approval or can disapprove. PRESIDENT Approves or disapproves.

The chart is interesting information.

But an anecodote might also provide information.

One requirement is that 2 individuals (witnesses to the acts of heroism) must attest to the actions.

When teaching an Officer Leadership Course, I would occassionally have a guest speaker - a Medal of Honor recipient. The following is a summary of some of the events, as related by Bud Hawk, in getting the award:

During WWII, Sgt John "Bud" Hawk was nominated for a Medal of Honor for actions in July 1944. He had gone overseas and was sent to France (lading on an airstrip on "Omaha beach" a few weeks after D-Day. He was in 4 - 5 major engagements, and the came home on leave in May/June 1945. He was home on leave in Bremerton, WA in June 1945, and was notified of his selection to receive the award. (He had been involved in several major actions up through Nov. 1944, when he was "blown off a mountain" by a nearby exploding shell.) At home, an Army Captain, phoning from Ft. Lewis, inquired of the young man (about 21) if he was Sgt. Hawk - and after receiving an affirmative response, told the Sgt that he had been selected to receive the MoH. Bud figured it was a joke by some of his friends, and was quite "vocal", and using words that wouldn't be appropriate when a Sgt talked with a Captain. After a while, the Captain was able to assure Bud that everything was as he stated - he (the caller) was a Captain, and Bud was selected to receive the Medal. Bud's next question was ... "what for?". The Captain was apologetic - he had no further information on the award.

Later, Bud found out the award was for an engagement in July 1944 where he was directing the actions of Tank Destroyers (fast/lightweight tanks that had a suitable gun that would take out Tiger tanks) and was responsible for destroying several German tanks during actions in France. The award had been written up, sent up the line, but several times, when inquiring of the witnesses - who had a nasty habit of being killed in combat, requiring the award write-up to be revised to list other names . . . and eventually, all the facts were collected, verified, and the nomination was sent forward, and eventually signed by the President.

Bud related that he had seen many many actions in combat that were equally heroic - if not more so ... and was troubled by attention he got, when others had done as much or more, and the others didn't get recognition. He was reluctant to accept the award.

Bud finally "accepted" the honor - feeling that he would accept the award as a representative of the military fighting men - many who also deserved it . . .and he indicates that many of the other MoH recipients he knows have a similar belief that awards are handed out to many deserving people, but there were many acts that were not properly recognized.

So the process is slow and laborious. There are the occassional "politic" awards (JFKerry's awards, or LBJ getting the Silver Star for accompanying a bomber during a WWII mission.) But most of the time, the process is designed to preserve the integrity of the award.

Mike

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