[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 38 (Thursday, February 26, 2026)]
[Senate]
[Page S703]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      TRIBUTE TO JOHN McCLAUGHRY 

  Mr. WELCH. Mr. President, I rise today to recognize John McClaughry, 
who will serve as the town moderator of Kirby, VT, for the 60th time 
this town meeting day.
  John's journey toward this milestone began in 1963, when he first 
moved to Vermont. In 1965, John built a log cabin in Kirby, a small 
town with about 500 residents tucked away in Vermont's Northeast 
Kingdom. He quickly became an important member of the community. Though 
he lived just part of the year in Kirby--he spent the rest of the year 
in Washington--he was elected town moderator in 1966. As town 
moderator, John is responsible for facilitating Kirby's annual town 
meeting. He ensures that voters' voices are heard, and he shapes 
compromises that keep the town running.
  John moved permanently to Vermont in 1970, on the same plot of land 
where he built his log cabin, and has lived there since. John was 
elected to represent Kirby in the Vermont House of Representatives from 
1969-1973, where he advocated for his constituents and every Vermonter 
in the Northeast Kingdom.
  After working on President Reagan's 1980 Presidential campaign, John 
joined the President's team at the White House Office of Policy 
Development. Despite his busy schedule in Washington, John always made 
it back to Kirby for town meeting day in March.
  In 1989, John would return to the Vermont General Assembly, this time 
in the State senate representing Caledonia County. John later 
established the Ethan Allen Institute, a think tank named for Vermont's 
own hero of the American Revolution. Here, John advocated for limited 
government and free markets. In 2023, he stepped down from the Ethan 
Allen Institute to allow for a new generation of leadership, but John 
has undoubtedly left a mark on Vermont.
  From the moment I met John in the 1970s, I admired him. John 
represents much of what makes Vermont's political culture unique: a 
devotion to localism; a belief in strong Vermont values; and a ``live 
and let live'' approach to governing. John's commitment to local 
governance and democracy runs through his life's work. From a life that 
has ranged from hitching rides on railcars, to serving in Vermont's 
State House and the White House, it is commendable that John has, for 
60 years in a row, served as town moderator for Kirby, the beloved home 
of John and his wife Anne.

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