Honoring Operation Desert Storm: Waging a battle to build a war memorial
#Operation Desert Storm #National Mall #Memorial #Scott Stump #Veterans #Kuwait #George H.W. Bush #Saddam Hussein #Persian Gulf War #Military History #Lincoln Memorial #Vietnam Memorial
📌 Key Takeaways
- Scott Stump, a Marine veteran of Operation Desert Storm, spearheaded a 39-year effort to build a memorial on the National Mall.
- The memorial is intended to honor the over 500,000 Americans who served and the 148 who died in Operation Desert Storm.
- Stump faced initial resistance from Congress and skepticism from military leaders regarding the importance of commemorating the war due to its relatively low casualty rate.
- The memorial, located near the Lincoln and Vietnam memorials, is expected to cost $42 million, with over half of the funding coming from Kuwait.
- Experts argue the memorial serves as a valuable historical reminder of a successful military operation with significant international cooperation, contrasting with more recent conflicts.
- Veterans are reportedly hopeful that the memorial will finally acknowledge their service and the significance of Desert Storm.
📖 Full Retelling
This CBS News report details the decades-long effort of Marine veteran Scott Stump to establish a memorial on the National Mall honoring those who served in Operation Desert Storm. The war, which liberated Kuwait from Saddam Hussein's rule in 1991 with minimal American casualties, has been largely forgotten. Stump faced significant hurdles, including Congressional resistance based on the perceived low casualty rate and skepticism from high-ranking officials like Colin Powell. After 39 months of persistent effort, the Desert Storm Memorial is scheduled to open in October, situated near the Lincoln and Vietnam memorials. The $42 million project was primarily funded by Kuwait, a nation that benefited directly from the U.S.-led intervention. Experts and veterans alike believe the memorial serves as an important reminder of a successful military operation and a testament to the potential for international cooperation.
🏷️ Themes
Military History, Memorialization, Veterans Affairs, Political Advocacy, Historical Memory, International Relations
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Original Source
Sunday Morning Honoring Operation Desert Storm: Waging a battle to build a war memorial By David Martin David Martin National Security Correspondent David Martin has been CBS News' national security correspondent, covering the Pentagon and the State Department, since 1993. Read Full Bio David Martin March 1, 2026 / 9:25 AM EST / CBS News Add CBS News on Google The first Persian Gulf War lasted six weeks. Kuwait was liberated from the murderous grasp of Saddam Hussein, and the Iraqi army admitted defeat, at a surrender ceremony presided over by the charismatic General Norman Schwarzkopf, who said of Iraq's leadership, "I'm not here to give them anything. I'm here to tell them exactly what we expect them to do." "Stormin' Norman," as he was called, became the most popular battlefield general since World War II. His commander-in-chief, President George H.W. Bush, had an 89 percent approval rating, and for the first time in a generation, America felt good about its military. "By God, we've kicked the Vietnam syndrome once and for all," Bush said. More than half a million Americans served in Operation Desert Storm; 148 were killed in action. Yet today, it is all but forgotten. "I just felt like that was not right, and that something had to be done to change that," said Scott Stump, who was a lowly Marine Lance Corporal in that war. He set out to build a memorial to Desert Storm on the National Mall, probably the most-prized real estate in all of America. "I'd been to Washington D.C. one time in my life; that was the summer of 8th grade," said Stump. "I had no connections, didn't know anybody." First, he had to persuade Congress to pass a bill authorizing the memorial – a process he likened to "pulling teeth." He said the responses he got included, "Well, there weren't enough people that died, you know, for there to be a memorial ." Before his acclaimed volumes on World War II and the Revolutionary War, Pulitzer Prize-winning historian Rick Atkinson wrote a book about Des...
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