{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["http://kaygranger.house.gov/press-release/granger-introduces-congressional-gold-medal-legislation-honor-monuments-men", "Granger Introduces Congressional Gold Medal Legislation to Honor the Monuments Men", "2013-12-05", "2013", "2013-12", "Republican", "House", "TX", "Kay Granger", "G000377", "kaygranger.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Today, Congresswoman Kay Granger (TX-12) introduced bipartisan legislation, The Monuments Men Recognition Act of 2013, H.R. 3658, to honor the famed \u201cMonuments Men\u201d of World War II with the Congressional Gold Medal. The Monuments Men and women helped locate famous works of art confiscated by the Nazis, and return them to their rightful owners.\n\t\u201cI don\u2019t believe it can be overstated how significant the contributions of the Monuments Men are to the preservation of many of the world\u2019s most remarkable pieces of art,\u201d said Granger. \u201cThe story of the Monuments Men is one that has to be told, and should be shared as an instrumental part of US and world history. I believe the veterans who participated are certainly worthy and deserving of the recognition of Congress\u2019 highest expression of appreciation, the Congressional Gold Medal.\u201d\n\tPresident Franklin D. Roosevelt approved the concept of cultural preservation officers in 1943. The Monuments Men and women were a group of World War II soldiers from 13 nations, most of whom were American, who were able to locate, preserve, and return almost five million cultural items, including many of the world\u2019s greatest works of art, to their rightful owners. The Monuments Men served in the Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives section of the Civil Affairs and Military Government Sections of the Western Allied Armies.\n\tThe story of the Monuments Men has been covered extensively by Robert Edsel. Edsel is the founder and president of the Monuments Men Foundation for the Preservation of Art and has written three non-fiction books on the topic including, Rescuing Da Vinci, The Monuments Men: Allied Heroes, Nazi Thieves and the Greatest Treasure Hunt in History and Saving Italy: The Race to Rescue a Nation\u2019s Treasures from the Nazis.\n\t\u201cThe Monuments Men and women set the gold standard for the protection of cultural treasures during the most destructive conflict in history,\u201d said Robert M. Edsel. \u201cThese heroes of civilization are worthy recipients of this great honor.\u201d \u00a0\n\tIn February 2014, the movie The Monuments Men, directed by George Clooney, will be released. The movie will follow \u201can unlikely World War II platoon\u2026tasked to rescue art masterpieces from Nazi thieves\u2026\u201d. Matt Damon, George Clooney, Cate Blanchett, John Goodman, and Bill Murray among many others are starring in the upcoming movie.\n\tSome of the world\u2019s most famous pieces of art were saved and recovered by this special military effort including Michelangelo\u2019s Bruges Madonna, Vermeer\u2019s The Astronomer, and Jan van Eyck\u2019s Ghent Altarpiece as well as works by Vincent van Gogh, Rembrandt and Leonardo da Vinci. In addition to preserving countless churches and other historic structures from the destruction of war, the Monuments Men and women oversaw the restitution of millions of stolen library books, church bells, Torah scrolls, and other priceless cultural objects to their rightful owners.\n\tStarting with the American Revolution, Congress has awarded gold medals as its highest expression of national appreciation for distinguished achievements and contributions. Congressional Gold Medal legislation must be co-sponsored by at least two-thirds of the Members of the House of Representatives.\n\tHonoring the work of the Monument Men has been a long-term effort for Congresswoman Granger. In 2007, Granger introduced H. Con. Res 48 a resolution to honor the contributions of these men and women. During the Armed Services Committee markup in May 2007, then Congressman Robin Hayes offered the resolution as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act. The amendment was approved by the Armed Services Committee and was included as part of the Defense Authorization Act that passed the House.\n\tThere are currently only five surviving members \u2013 four men and one woman \u2013 of the Monuments Men.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["http://kaygranger.house.gov/press-release/granger-introduces-congressional-gold-medal-legislation-honor-monuments-men"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.3479739427566528, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}