[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 144 (Monday, December 1, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1674]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        IN RECOGNITION OF LIEUTENANT COLONEL MICHAEL L. DAVIDSON

                                 ______
                                 

                      HON. SANFORD D. BISHOP, JR.

                               of georgia

                    in the house of representatives

                        Monday, December 1, 2014

  Mr. BISHOP of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to 
Lieutenant Colonel Michael L. Davidson for his exemplary dedication to 
duty and his service to the United States Army and to our great nation. 
He has served for the last two and a half years as a Congressional 
Budget Liaison for the Secretary of the Army. On November 25, 2014, he 
deployed to Afghanistan where he is serving as the Director of 
Legislative Affairs for the Commander of the International Security 
Assistance Force and United States Forces--Afghanistan.
  A native of Moore Haven, Florida, Lieutenant Colonel Davidson became 
a Cadet at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in 1989. While at 
West Point, he participated in Corps Squad Sports and earned a Bachelor 
of Science degree. He was commissioned as a Field Artillery Officer in 
May 1993. After completing the Artillery Officer Basic Course, he 
served as a Lieutenant for 18 months in the Republic of Korea as a 
platoon leader and operations officer in 6th Battalion, 37th Field 
Artillery Regiment, a rocket artillery unit. After returning from 
Korea, Lieutenant Davidson was assigned to 1st Battalion 321st Airborne 
Field Artillery Regiment at Fort Bragg, North Carolina. There he served 
as a platoon leader, battalion adjutant officer, and assistant 
battalion operations officer.
  After graduating from the Captain's Career Course he returned to the 
Republic of Korea and the 2nd Infantry Division, where he served in the 
1st Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment (Manchu) as a Battalion Fire 
Support Officer, Battery Commander, Headquarters and Headquarters 
Company Commander; and Aide de Camp to the Commanding General. 
Following this assignment, he deployed with the 3rd Army Coalition 
Forces Land Component Command (CFLCC) in 2002, serving as the lead 
planner for the Deep Operations Coordination Cell and later as an 
effects planner in the CFLCC Commander's Early Entry Command Post in 
Baghdad, Iraq.
  Major Michael Davidson returned to the 18th Airborne Corps and served 
as a Multi-National Corps-Iraq lead planner before serving as the 3-
319th Airborne Field Artillery Regiment Battalion Operations and 
Executive Officer in the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 82nd Airborne 
Division during their combat deployment in Iraq.
  The Second Congressional District of Georgia gained a compassionate 
and knowledgeable resource in 2008 when Major Michael Davidson was 
assigned to the Office of the Chief of Legislative Liaison, where he 
served as a Congressional Fellow in my Washington, D.C. office. 
Following his promotion to Lieutenant Colonel, he took command of the 
3rd Brigade Special Troops Battalion, 82nd Airborne Division where his 
battalion served as part of the Army's Global Response Force for all 
world-wide contingency operations.
  Lieutenant Colonel Davidson's leadership throughout his career has 
positively impacted his soldiers, peers, and superiors. As a 
Congressional and Budget Liaison Officer, he worked directly with the 
Senate and House Appropriations and Armed Services Committees to 
educate and inform Members of Congress and staff on the many diverse 
and important procurement initiatives of the U.S. Army.
  Mr. Speaker, today I ask my colleagues to join me, my wife, Vivian, 
the more than 700,000 people in Georgia's Second Congressional 
District, and all Americans, in extending our sincerest appreciation to 
Lieutenant Colonel Michael L. Davidson for two decades of service to 
our nation. In addition to gratitude for his selfless service and 
instrumental role in supporting operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, 
Lieutenant Colonel Davidson has the respect, admiration, and affection 
of many on Capitol Hill and we wish him all the best in his deployment 
to Afghanistan and his upcoming promotion to Colonel.

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