Political Debates About United States Military Bands
Long considered a Sacred cow (idiom), sacred cow of American defense spending, United States military bands, U.S. federal military bands have periodically faced the prospect of decreased allocations in military budgets in proposals occasionally floated by lawmakers of the U.S. Democratic and Republican parties. Defunding efforts have generally been opposed by military leadership, veteran's groups, and music educators, and have largely been unsuccessful and short-lived. Background The United States has a long tradition of military music; the U.S. Marine Band is the nation's oldest musical ensemble of any genre and military composers, such as John Philip Sousa, have left an indelible impact on the evolution of a distinct musical tradition in the United States. Today, the five branches of the United States armed forces maintain nearly 150 military bands (including active duty units, part-time reserve and National Guard bands, and bands made-up of volunteer service members), with annua ...
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