Until now.

Backed by high public sentiment for the Marine Corps and big-name supporters including actor R. Lee Ermey “Gunny” and Gen. Anthony Zinni, HR 24 is poised to pass the House of Representatives this spring. Further, U.S. Sen. Pat Roberts (R-KS) has introduced a companion bill to expedite the process in the Senate.

On Feb. 25, 2010 in Washington D.C., the Marine Corps League held a press conference to drum up support for the legislation.

Here are some clips from the conference:

Retired Gunnery Sgt. R. Lee Ermey, widely known for his performance as the sadistic drill instructor in the 1987 film “Full Metal Jacket,” headlined a Thursday news conference in Washington, D.C., calling to rename the Department of the Navy the Department of the Navy and Marine Corps.

The event, at the Longworth House Office Building, was aimed at drumming up support for House Resolution 24, a bill authored by Rep. Walter B. Jones, R-N.C., that formally proposes the name change.

“We’re not asking for a promotion. We’re not asking for more money. We don’t want a uniform change,” Ermey said. “The only thing we want is for future Marine who shed blood for their country to at least get respect and receive honorable mention in the department they fall under.”

Jones has introduced a version of his resolution, which now has 367 co-sponsors, every year since 2001. Despite wide-spread support in the House, it has failed in the Senate each time.

For the eighth year, the language of the resolution was included in the National Defense Authorization Act, unanimously approved by the House Armed Services Committee in June.

Each year since 2001, however, the Senate has stripped Jones’ name change from the legislation. Jones is now waiting to see if it will happen again, but remains hopeful.

“I think we have a chance. We really do,” Jones said when asked if he thought the measure might pass the Senate this year.

Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan., introduced a sister bill in the Senate, but it has just two co-sponsors — Sens. Richard Burr and Kay Hagan from North Carolina.

“Why can’t we call it the Department of Navy — and Marine Corps?” Roberts asked. “Why can’t we add three words to right an injustice? Why can’t we add three words to remind the Secretary of the Department of Defense and the world that the Marines are second to none?”

Ermey said he struggles to see logic in those who oppose the name change.

“I can’t imagine anyone looking one of these wounded veterans without arms or legs in the eyes telling them no.” Ermey said. “How do you reason that?”

Other speakers included Gen. Anthony Zinni, former commander of U.S. Central Command; former Commandant Gen. Alfred M. Gray; Bronze Star recipient Sgt. James Eddie Wright, a Marine who lost both hands in combat in Iraq yet went on to become a Marine Corps Martial Arts Program instructor; Michael Blum, the Marine Corps League’s executive director; Tracy Della Vecchia, founder of MarineParents.com; and Dick Linn, whose son was killed in Iraq in 2005.

After the conference, Ermey made his way to Bullfeathers of Capitol Hill, a nearby bar where he planned to hold a rally to drum up additional support and publicity for the departmental name change.

Washington D.C. – Feb. 19, 2010 – Full Metal Jacket star R. Lee Ermey and the Marine Corps League will hold a press conference Thursday, Feb. 25, in Washington D.C. to announce legislation and a grassroots campaign to give Marines equal status with the Navy.

The conference will be held 3 PM in 1334 Longworth House Office Building. The conference was previously scheduled for another time.

Ermey will also appear at a rally at 5 PM at Bullfeathers of Capitol Hill restaurant. Press and interested parties are invited to attend.

The legislation, H.R. 24 and S.504, would change the name of the Department of the Navy to the “Department of the Navy and Marine Corps” and the Secretary of the Navy to the “Secretary of the Navy and Marine Corps.” It would not create a separate department.

Speaking at the conference will be:

• R. Lee Ermey, aka “Gunny,” a Golden Globe-nominated actor and Marine veteran. Ermey is host of The History Channel’s “Mail Call” and “Lock N’ Load with R. Lee Ermey” and star of major films including Full Metal Jacket, Dead Man Walking and Toy Story.
• Sgt. Eddie Wright, a Marine veteran and Bronze Star recipient who lost both hands in combat in Iraq in 2004. Despite his injuries, he became a Marine Corps hand-to-hand combat instructor, later retired, and is now a defense contractor.
• Dick Linn, a Gold Star father who lost his son Karl in Iraq in 2005.
• U.S. Rep Walter Jones, who introduced H.R. 24.
• Tracy Della Vecchia, MarineParents.com founder and executive director. Her website has 130,000-plus members and provides support for parents of Marines.
• Michael Blum, Marine Corps League executive director.

The Marine Corps operates under the Department of the Navy. Families of Marines who die in combat receive condolence letters on Navy letterhead—with no mention of the Marine Corps.

Ermey said a major reason for his involvement with the campaign was to properly honor Marines who have fought and died in battle.

“When the family of a fallen Marine receives a condolence letter, the Marine Corps name should be proudly mentioned,” Ermey said. “I don’t think that’s too much to ask for.”