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ACROSS SESSIONS
- Subject Index: Since 1995
- Bills & Resolutions: Since 1994
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Developed and maintained by the Division of Legislative Automated Systems.
1995 SESSION
LD6410144Patrons--Callahan, Ball, Copeland, Dillard, Guest, Morgan, Murphy, Wagner and Wardrup; Senators: Andrews and Gartlan
WHEREAS, Admiral Husband E. Kimmel was Commander-in-Chief of the U.S. Pacific Fleet at the time of the surprise Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941; and
WHEREAS, at the time of the attack, Admiral Kimmel was serving in a temporary appointment, but following the attack was retired as Rear Admiral, his permanent grade; and
WHEREAS, in 1944, a Naval Court of Inquiry found that no offense had been committed nor serious blame incurred on the part of Admiral Kimmel and specifically approved the judgments and actions of Admiral Kimmel under the circumstances prior to and during the attack; and
WHEREAS, in 1946, a joint committee of the Congress investigating the Pearl Harbor attack specifically found that there had been no dereliction of duty by Admiral Kimmel; and
WHEREAS, the Officer Personnel Act of 1947 permitted previously retired officers, with the approval of the President and the advice and consent of the Senate, to be advanced to the rank of Admiral on the retired list of naval officers; and
WHEREAS, when this provision of the Officer Personnel Act of 1947 was implemented, Rear Admiral Kimmel’s name was not submitted by the Navy Department to the President for advancement to the rank of Admiral; and
WHEREAS, under the provisions of the Officer Personnel Act, advancement is at the discretion of the President; and
WHEREAS, on October 20, 1990, the officers and trustees of the United States Naval Academy Alumni Association unanimously adopted a resolution urging the Secretaries of Defense and the Navy to submit Admiral Kimmel’s name to the President with the recommendation that the President nominate Admiral Kimmel for posthumous advancement to the rank of Admiral on the list of retired naval officers; and
WHEREAS, on December 8, 1990, the Pearl Harbor Survivors Association unanimously adopted a similar resolution; and
WHEREAS, on October 22, 1991, 37 retired senior naval officers, including two former Chairmen of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, four former Chiefs of Naval Operations, 27 other full Admirals, three Vice Admirals, and one Rear Admiral, signed a letter urging the President to nominate Admiral Kimmel for posthumous advancement; and
WHEREAS, on October 4, 1994, the recently retired Chief of Naval Operations reversed his earlier position in opposition to the advancement of Admiral Kimmel and wrote to the Secretary of the Navy urging that the case of Admiral Kimmel be reopened; and
WHEREAS, distinguished historians continue to argue that Admiral Kimmel should be advanced posthumously to the rank of Admiral; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED by the House of Delegates, the Senate concurring, That the General Assembly hereby urge the President of the United States, the Secretary of Defense, and the Secretary of the Navy to take the necessary action to advance posthumously Rear Admiral Husband E. Kimmel to the rank of Admiral on the list of retired naval officers; and, be it
RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the House of Delegates transmit copies of this resolution to the President of the United States, the Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of the Navy, and the members of the Virginia Congressional delegation so that they may be apprised of the sense of the General Assembly of Virginia.