Political Quotes

“next month Col. Michael Colburn, who is the director of the U.S. Marine Band, will retire after nearly 30 years with this history-rich and venerated organization. We like the Marine Band, of course. My son is a Marine. But it is especially nice because Colonel Colburn is a native Vermonter, and his appreciation for the band, known worldwide as ``The President's Own,'' began decades ago when the then-12-year-old euphonium-playing St. Albans native met a principal in the band while at summer band camp in Vermont. In 1987, Colonel Colburn joined ``The President's Own'' as a euphonium player and ultimately became the band's director, a post he has held for the last decade. His tenure has taken him around the world and back again. He has played for Presidents and foreign dignitaries, at state dinners and inaugurations and regular performances that thousands have witnessed in Washington at the Marine Barracks during the weekly parades. I have represented the Green Mountain State of Vermont in this Chamber longer than anyone in the history of our State. So you can imagine my enthusiasm when I see a Vermonter here in Washington and all the more so when I have the opportunity of capturing an image such as this, of Colonel Colburn conducting ``The President's Own'' during the January 2013 inauguration of President Obama. I was standing up on the stand when the President was being inaugurated and took that picture of Colonel Colburn.…”