{"database": "openregs", "table": "congressional_record", "rows": [["CREC-2026-02-26-pt1-PgS703", "2026-02-26", 119, 2, null, null, "TRIBUTE TO JOHN McCLAUGHRY", "SENATE", "SENATE", "TRIBUTETO", "S703", "S703", "[{\"name\": \"Peter Welch\", \"role\": \"speaking\"}]", null, "172 Cong. Rec. S703", "Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 38 (Thursday, February 26, 2026)\n\n[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 38 (Thursday, February 26, 2026)]\n[Senate]\n[Page S703]\nFrom the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]\n\n                      TRIBUTE TO JOHN McCLAUGHRY\n\n  Mr. WELCH. Mr. President, I rise today to recognize John McClaughry,\nwho will serve as the town moderator of Kirby, VT, for the 60th time\nthis town meeting day.\n  John's journey toward this milestone began in 1963, when he first\nmoved to Vermont. In 1965, John built a log cabin in Kirby, a small\ntown with about 500 residents tucked away in Vermont's Northeast\nKingdom. He quickly became an important member of the community. Though\nhe lived just part of the year in Kirby--he spent the rest of the year\nin Washington--he was elected town moderator in 1966. As town\nmoderator, John is responsible for facilitating Kirby's annual town\nmeeting. He ensures that voters' voices are heard, and he shapes\ncompromises that keep the town running.\n  John moved permanently to Vermont in 1970, on the same plot of land\nwhere he built his log cabin, and has lived there since. John was\nelected to represent Kirby in the Vermont House of Representatives from\n1969-1973, where he advocated for his constituents and every Vermonter\nin the Northeast Kingdom.\n  After working on President Reagan's 1980 Presidential campaign, John\njoined the President's team at the White House Office of Policy\nDevelopment. Despite his busy schedule in Washington, John always made\nit back to Kirby for town meeting day in March.\n  In 1989, John would return to the Vermont General Assembly, this time\nin the State senate representing Caledonia County. John later\nestablished the Ethan Allen Institute, a think tank named for Vermont's\nown hero of the American Revolution. Here, John advocated for limited\ngovernment and free markets. In 2023, he stepped down from the Ethan\nAllen Institute to allow for a new generation of leadership, but John\nhas undoubtedly left a mark on Vermont.\n  From the moment I met John in the 1970s, I admired him. John\nrepresents much of what makes Vermont's political culture unique: a\ndevotion to localism; a belief in strong Vermont values; and a ``live\nand let live'' approach to governing. John's commitment to local\ngovernance and democracy runs through his life's work. From a life that\nhas ranged from hitching rides on railcars, to serving in Vermont's\nState House and the White House, it is commendable that John has, for\n60 years in a row, served as town moderator for Kirby, the beloved home\nof John and his wife Anne.\n\n                          ____________________"]], "columns": ["granule_id", "date", "congress", "session", "volume", "issue", "title", "chamber", "granule_class", "sub_granule_class", "page_start", "page_end", "speakers", "bills", "citation", "full_text"], "primary_keys": ["granule_id"], "primary_key_values": ["CREC-2026-02-26-pt1-PgS703"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 0.8338768966495991, "source": "Federal Register API & Regulations.gov API", "source_url": "https://www.federalregister.gov/developers/api/v1", "license": "Public Domain (U.S. Government data)", "license_url": "https://www.regulations.gov/faq"}