if prayer were made of sound, the skies over england that night would have deafened the wor world. captains paced their decks, pilots tapped their gauges. commanders pored over maps fully aware that for all the months of meticulous planning, everything could go wrong. the winds, the tides, the element of surprise. and above all, the audacious bet that what waited an the other side of the channel would compel men not to shrink away but to charge ahead. fresh faced gis rubbed trinkets, kissed pictures of sweethearts, checked and rechecked their equipment. god, asked one, give me guts. and in the predawn hours, planes rumbled down runways. gliders and paratroopers slipped through the sky. giant screws began to turn on an armada that looked more like ships than sea. and more than 150,000 souls set off toward this tiny sliver of sand upon which hung more than the fate of a war. but rather, the course of human history. president hollande, distinguished guests, i am honored to return here today to pay tribute to the men and women of a generation who defied every danger. among them are veterans of d-day. gentlemen, we are truly humbled by your presence here today. just last week i received a letter from a french citizen. dear mr. president and the american people, he wrote. we are honored to welcome you to thank you again for all the pain and efforts of the american people and others and our common struggle for freedom. today we say the same to the people of france. thank you. especially for the generosity that you've shown the americans who have come here over the generations to these beaches and to the sacred place of rest for 9,387-mile-an-ho americans. at the end of the war, when our ships set off for america filled with our fallen, tens of thousands of liberated europeans turned out to say farewell. and they pledged to take care of the more than 60,000 americans who would remain in cemeteries on this continent. in the words of one man, we will take care of the fallen as if their tombs were our children's. and the people of france, you have kept your word. like the true friends you are. we are forever grateful. here we don't just commemorate victory, as proud of that victory as we are. we don't just honor sacrifice as grateful as the world is. we come to remember why america and our allies gave so much for the survival of liberty at this moment of maximum peril. we come to tell the story of the men and women who did it so that it remains seared into the memory of a future world. we tell this story for the old soldiers who hold themselves a little straighter today to salute brothers who never made it home. we tell the story for the daughter who clutches a faded photo of her father forever young. for the child who runs his fingers over colorful ribbons he knows signifies something of great consequence. even if he doesn't yet fully understand why. we tell this story to bear what witness we can to what happened when the boys from america reached omaha beach. by daybreak, blood soaked the water. bombs broke the sky. thousands of paratroopers that dropped into the wrong landing sites, thousands of rounds bit into flesh and sand. entire companies worth of men fell in minutes. hell's beach had earned its name. by 8:30 a.m., general omar bradley expected our troops to be a mile inland. six hours after the landings, he wrote, we held only ten yards of beach. in this age of instant commentary, the invasion would have swiftly n roundly been declared as it was by one officer, a debacle. but such a race to judgment would not have taken into account the courage of free men. success may not come with rushing speed, president roosevelt would say that night, but we shall return again and again. and paratroopers fought through the countryside to find one another. rangers pulled themselves over those cliffs to silence nazi guns. to the west, americans took utah beach with relative ease. to the east, the british tore through the coast fueled by the fury of five years of bombs over london and a solemn vow to fight them on the beaches. the canadians, whose shore had not been touched by war, drove far into france. and here, at omaha, troops who finally made it to the seawall used it as shelter. where general barked, if you're rangers, lead the way. by the end of that longest day, this beach had been fought, lost, refought and won. a piece of europe once again liberated and free. hitler's wall was breached, letting loose patton's army to pour into france. . within a week, the world's bloodiest beach had become the world's busiest port. within a month 1 million allied troops thundered in, as our armies marched in, one pilot said it looked as if the crust of the earth had shaken loose. the arch detriumph lit up for the first time in year. and paris was punctuated by shouts of "viv la france." s of course, even as we gather here at normandy, we remember that freedom's victory was also made possible by so many others who wore america's uniform. two years before he commanded armies, eisenhower's troops sliced through north africa. three times before d-day or gis stormed the beaches at silly, so learno. enzio. divisions like the fighting 36th went through italy, fighting through the mud for months, marching through towns, past waving children, before opening the gates to rome. as the dogfaces marched to europe, the devil dogs, the marines, clawed their way from island to island in the pacific in some of the war's fiercest fighting. back home, an army of women, including my grandmother, rolled up their sleeves to help build a mighty arsenal of democracy. but it was here, on these shores that the tide was turned in that common struggle for freedom. what more powerful manifestation of american's commitment to freedom than the sight of wave after wave after wave of young men boarding the boats to liberate people they had never met. we say it now as if it couldn't be any other way, but in the annals of history, the world had never seen anything like it. when the war was won, we claimed no spoils of victory. we helped europe rebuild. we claimed no land other than the earth where we buried those who gave their lives under our flag, and where we stationed those who still serve under it. s but america's claim, our commitment to liberty, our claim to equality, our claim to freedom and to the inherent dignity of every human being, that claim is wring in the blood on these beaches, and it will endure for eternity. norm i did not. normandy, this was democracy's beachhead. our victory in that war decided not just a century, but shaped the security and well-being of all posterity. we worked to turn old adversaries into new allies, we build new prosperity. we stood once more with the people of this continent through a long twilight struggle until finally a wall tumbled down and an iron curtain too, from south america to southeast asia, 70 years of democratic movement spread. on nations that once knew only the blinders of fear began to taste the blessings of freedom. none of that would have happened without the men who were willing to lay down their lives for people they had never met, and ideals they couldn't live without. none it would have happened without the troops present roosevelt called the lifeblood of america, the hope of the wor world. at home, barely more than boy, returned home heroes. but to their great credit, that is not how this generation -- after the war, some put away their medals. were quiet about their service, moved on. 134 carrying shrapnel and scars found was much harder. system, like my grandfather, lived a quiet life, trading a uniform and a set of responsibilities as another, a teacher, a salesman, a doctor, an engineer, a dad, a grandpa. our country made sure millions of them earned a college education, opening up opportunity on an unprecedented scale. they married those sweethearts and bought new homes and raised families and built businesses, lifting up the greatest middle class the world has ever known. and through it all, they were inspired, i suspect, by memories of fallen brothers, memories that drove them to live their lives each day as they possibly could. whenever the world makes you cynical, stop and think of these men. whenever you lose hope, stop and think of these men. think of wilson caldwell, who was told he couldn't pilot a plane without a high school degree, so he decided to jump out of a plane instead. he did, here on d-day, with the 101st airborne, when he was just 16 years old. think of harry kulkowitz, the jewish son of russian immigrants, who fudged his age in the enlistment so he could join his friends in the fight. no worry, harry, the statute of limitations has expired. he came ashore at utah beach on d-day. now that he's come back, we said he could have anything for lunch today. he helped liberate this coast, after all, but he said a hamburger would do fine. what's more american than that? think of rock merit, who saw a recruitment poster asking him if he was man enough to be a paratrooper. he signed up on the spot. that landed him here on d-day with the 508th regiment, the unit that would suffer heavy casualties. 70 years later, it's said that all across ft. bragg, they know rock, not just for the exploits on d-day, but over 30 years in the army, but at 91, he still speaks to the men, and still bleeds o.d. green for the airborne. whenever the world makes you cynical, whenever you doubt that courage and goodness is possible, stop and think of these men. wilson and harry and rock, they are here today, and although i know we already gave them a rousing round of applause, along with all our veterans at d-day, if you could stand, please stand. if not, please raise your hand. let us recognize your service one more. these message waged war so they might know peace. they sacrificed so we might be free. they fought in hopes of a day when we would no longer need to fight. we are grateful to them. [ applause ] and, gentlemen, i want each of you to know your legacy is in good hands. we're in a time when it's been never more tempting to pursue narrow self-interest, slough off common endeavor, this generation of americans, our men and women of war, have chosen to do their part as well. rock, i want you to know that staff sergeant melvin martin, who is here today is following in your footsteps. he just had to become an american first, because he was born in honduras, moved to the united states, joined the army. after tours in iraq and afghanistan, he was reassigned to the 82nd airborne, and sunday he'll parachute into normandy. i became part of a family of real american heroes, he said, the paratroopers of the 82nd. wilson, you should know that specialist janice rodriguez joined the army not even two years ago, assigned to the 101st just last month earned the title of the airborne division air assault soldier of the year. that's inspiring, but not surprising, when the women of today's military have taken on responsibilities including combat like never before. i want each of you to know that their commitment to their fellow service members and vet advance endures. sergeant first class brian hawthorn's grandfather served under patton and mcarthur. he served two tours in iraq earned the bronze star in baghdad, and today he and his wife use their experience to help other veterans and military families navigate theirs. he is here to participate in sunday's jump. here just yesterday he enlisted in the army reserve. this generation, this 9/11 generation of service members, they too felt something. they answered some call. they said, i will go. they too chose to serve a cause that's greater than self. many even after they knew they would be sent into harm's way. for more than a decade they have endured tour after tour. sergeant first class cory ramsburg has served ten. i told cory's incredible story before, most recently when he sat with my wife michelle at the state of the union address. it was here at omaha beach on the 65th anniversary of d-day when i first met cory and his fellow army rangers after they made their own jump into normandy. the next time i saw him, he was in the hospital, unable to speak or walk after an ied nearly killed him in afghanistan. but over the past five years, cory has grown stronger, learning to speak again and stand again and walk again. earlier this year, he jumped out of a plane again. the first words cory said to me after his accident echoed those words first shouted all those years on this beach -- rangers lead the way. cory has come back today, along with melvin and janice, brian, many of their fellow active-duty service members. we thank them for their service. they are a reminder that the tradition represented by these gentlemen continues. we are on this earth for only a moment in time. and fewer of is have parents and grandparents to tell us about what the veterans of d-day did here 70 years ago. as i was landing on marine one, i told my staff, i don't think there's a time where i missed my grandfather more, where i would more happy to have him here than this day. so we have to tell their stories for them. we have to do our best to uphold in our own lives the values that they were prepared to die for. we have to honor those who carry that forward legacy, recognizing that people cannot live in freedom unless free people are prepared to die for them. as today's wars come to an end, this generation will step out of uniform. they too will build families and lives of their own. they too will become leaders in their communities, and commerce and industry, and perhaps politics, the leaders we need to the beachheads of our time. god willing, they too will grow old in the land they helped to keep free. and someday future generations, whether it's 70 or 700 years hence, will gather at places like this to honor them. and to say that these were generations of men and women who proved once again that the united states of america is and will remain the greatest force for freedom that the world has ever known. may god bless our veterans and all who serve with them, including those who rest here in eternal peace, and may god bless all who serve today for the peace and security of the world. may god bless the people of france, and may god bless our united states of america. you are watching american history tv. 48 hours of programming on american history every weekend on c-span3. follow us on twitter @c-span history for information on our schedule, up coming programs and keep up with the latest history news. so i tell the story about how i, whose every aspect of whose identity is in we way or another a threat to israel, my gender is male, my religion is muslim, my citizenship is american, but my nationality is iranian. my ethnicity is persian. my culture is middle eastern. everything about me sends off all the warnings signals for israel, and so the experience of an iranian-american single man trying to get through ben-gurion airport in the 21st century is a reminder to everyone that despite the way that globalization has brought us closer, and has diminished the boundaries that separate us as nations, as ethnicities, as people, as cultures, despite all of that, all you have to do is spend a few minutes trying to get through ben-gurion airport, that those divisions that separate us are very much alive. rezaaslan will take your e-mails and tweets and phone calls, on the current instability in the middle east. live on three hours sunday at noon eastern on book tv's in depth part of a holiday weekend of nonfix books and authors. book tv, television for serious readers. remind your church in this biis crennel tenial years, when we are the first generation who have experienced attacks on the continental united states, we are the first generation of americans to have felt what it was like to have our government buildings attacked. remind your children that freedom is not free and our country's greatness is found in one another. that's what the star-spangled banner is about. that's what this commemoration year is about, to tell that story, and to live every voice and to sing. on c-span3's american history tv this fourth of july weekend, the 200th anniversary of the star-spangled banner, tonight at 8:30, saturday night at 8:00 visit the classroom of professor howl as he talks about radiation experiment comed after world war ii. and a preyour of jeffrey engle as manuscript on george h.w. bush and the peaceful end to the cold war. this is the larger amount -- and is pretty healthy, just shy of 600 million. to put that in perspective vanderbilt is in our peer group, and they're at 6 billion. harvard, which represents, you know, the pinnacle of the nation's endocuments is at $34 billion, and they have a $6 billion campaign going on right now, just to put it in perspective. if we are going to aspire to have that type of excellence, those types of facilities to produce that type of excellence on our campus, then we have to have that type of investment. so it's my responsibility now, and to be the 17th president's responsibility when he or she is named to go out and ensure we expand those ref streams. >> interim president dr. frederick on the challenges facing the predominantly black university sunday night at 8:00 eastern and pacific on c-span's q&a. jack lieb, a cameraman for hearst corporation was assigned to cover the invasion of france in 1944. d-day to germany was com pine by mr. lieb from his own covered film. shots in england, france in germany while on the job. the archives restored the film with the 1976 audio recording, of a lecture. it was his last lecture before he passed away. the film and audio were donated to the natl

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