Murtha Must Go!!

Murtha Be Not Proud...

2011-10-05T18:06:00.009-05:00

Back in February, 2010, I stated that with Congressman John Murtha's death, the mission of this blog had ended.

Well, what I saw today just about made me gag:

JOHNSTOWN -—

A life-size likeness of the late U.S. Rep. John Murtha will be unveiled Monday morning at the Veteran’s Park in Johnstown.

In a press conference at the Frank J. Pasquerilla Conference Center on Tuesday, the congressman’s wife, Joyce Murtha, said a public dedication ceremony will be held at 10:30 a.m. Retired U.S. Gen. James Jones, former commander of all NATO forces, will give the keynote speech.

“(My husband) had a lot of admiration for Gen. Jones and spoke of him quite often,” Joyce Murtha said. “I’m delighted he’s taking the time to come in and be with us.”

More than $180,000 in private donations have already been raised to bring a statue of Murtha to the Veteran’s Park, with 65 percent of contributions coming from individuals who gave $100 or less. According to Joyce Murtha, fundraising efforts will continue.

“We are still accepting contributions because we need a maintenance fund for the years ahead,” she said.

“We don’t want to see the statue fall into disrepair,” she added.

The part of the article that made me gag the most was thus:

Wayne Hyde of Manns Choice was selected as sculptor for the statue, which is in place at the park but covered by a canvass. He said he was honored to help with the project.

“I hope the statue will stand there to always remind people of a good public servant,” he said.

And with that quote, dear readers, I stand here... speechless.

I invite anyone to peruse the contents of this blog, which for a span of nearly four years served to chronicle the misdeeds and malfeasance that pock-marked the long, ingnominious tenure of Jihad Jack Murtha. The same Jack Murtha who from his early days as a congressman was a shining example of a self-serving, corrupt politician in the tradition of Huey Long. Murtha, remember, was proclaimed an "unindicted co-conspirator" in the Abscam scandal in the early 80s. Like a pharaoh with a god complex, he erected countless monuments to himself in PA-12, including a barely utilized, multi-, multi-million dollar airport complete with state of the art equipment that no one knew how to run. Murtha was also known as the "King of Pork" and was no stranger to seedy earmarks to political cronies who, in turn, would keep his campaign war chest well stocked.

If John Murtha's only crimes were reckless malfeasance with taxpayer monies, despite the fact he was unmatched in that dubious category, it would be one thing.

But John Murtha, though an ex-Marine, was a ruthless man who would let nothing stand in the way of his political ambitions, nor would he leave any perceived stepping stone un-stepped on to meet his nefarious ends, no matter whose lives he ruined in the process.

Enter the Haditha Marines.

Though a corpulent man, Mr. Murtha was quick to make a bee line to any microphone he could to condemn what he said was a massacre against innocent civilians in the town of Haditha in Iraq. According to Murtha, the Marines in Haditha just 'lost it' and went on to massacre innocent civilians in 'cold blood', supposedly without a firefight, supposedly without any kind of resistance at all. Without a shred of evidence to back up a single assertion in his story, Jihad Jack Murtha doubled down on his traitorous tirade, going on every news show he could to spread his lies.

Murtha, of course, bet his political future on this story. Up until that point (though history would prove the contrary) Jack Murtha was considered a "hawkish" democrat, and was persona non grata to the leftist power structure of the democrat party. He had to find a way to endear himself to the far left and to then-Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, in particular. He had his sights set as being the House Majority Leader, and betted (correctly) that if he could turn public sentiment against the Iraqi war, the democrats would win Congress in 2006, and Murtha surmised (wrongly) that he would then collect his ultimate 'chit' for getting the ball rolling--his much-coveted leadership seat of the Majority party in the United States Congress.

In the process, Jack Murtha was more than ready to absolutely ruin the lives of innocent Marines whose only crime was to follow the rules of engagement. One of the parents of the wrongfully accused Marines, Darryl Sharratt, writes on this very blog of the hell that his son and his entire family went through in the ordeal.

Time passed. "Jihad Jack" Murtha, in first coming out against the war in 2005, and then doubling down with his false accusations against the Haditha marines in May of 2006, allowed the democrats to come out from under their collective rocks to turn the tide of public opinion against the war in Iraq. The democrats handily took over congress in the November, 2006 elections, and Jack Murtha was ready to call in his 'chits' and assume his 'rightful' place as House Majority Leader.

And that's where Murtha's fortunes changed.

Despite calling in his markers and getting support from the then-newly elected Speaker Nancy Pelosi (Murtha went so far as to ensure that one of his earmarks was specifically targeted toward one of Nancy Pelosi's nephews), the far left wing rank and file of the United States congress threw out Jack Murtha like last week's garbage. Once thought to be the darling of the left after selling out the Haditha Marines, Murtha had outlived his usefulness after the democrat congressional victories of 2006. His bid for the leadership for the Democrats in the U.S. House was summarily ignored, and instead Steny Hoyer was elected to the post, and Murtha was once again relegated to the smoke-filled rooms, making back room deals and continuing his legacy of corruption.

As time went on, of course, all of the Haditha Marines (save for one, to save face) were acquitted/exonerated of all charges with respect to he incident. Turns out there was an IED. Turns out that there was a firefight. Turns out that the Haditha Marines were, in fact, correctly following the rules of engagement.

As the real facts of the Haditha case began coming out, numerous calls for Murtha to apologize for his remarks were coming to the fore. Murtha continued to use the tired excuse that he was unable to comment since the investigation was 'ongoing.' Haditha Marines, one by one (including Darryl Sharratt's son, Justin) were being acquitted of charges, followed by more calls on Murtha to recant his story and to apologize to the Haditha Marines.

Each call to do so fell on deaf ears.

Murtha never apologized.

Murtha's patently false accusations against the Haditha Marines led to incredible pressure to create a show trial, and to deny the assumption of innocence, both in the military courts as well as in the courts of public opinion. The Haditha Marines were treated as base criminals, held in small cells, and were denied the basic creature comforts that were otherwise showered on Guantanamo Bay detainees. These valiant heroes literally went through hell, their shackled backs ridden on by a corrupt politician who was hellbent on a sardonic, sadistic quest to utilize their situation as a twisted, albeit unsuccessful means of catapulting him to a coveted political future.

And Murtha, so full of himself as he was, couldn't bring himself to apologize.

Murtha took his misdeeds with him to his grave. Only he and the Lord will know if he died with a contrite heart. But the Haditha Marines and their families, scarred as they were from their experiences, will never know the satisfaction of an apology.

So forgive me if I don't share in the sentiments of Joyce Murtha and the others who will be dedicating a life size statue to a man who was supposedly a "model public servant."

Murtha already has untold monuments in Johnstown and other parts of PA-12 dedicated to his profligate largesse.

Murtha doesn't need a statue to honor his memory.

On the other hand, a Dorian Gray picture, perhaps.

To Our Dear Readers...Our Final Post

2010-02-08T14:07:00.009-06:00

If you're visiting this blog today, you have no doubt heard or read that John Murtha has died.

We at Murtha Must Go!! feel sorrow for the family of Congressman John Murtha and extend our condolences. It is never easy to lose a loved one; we wish them well, and it is our hope that they will not take the remainder of this post personally against them.

It gives me no pleasure to write the following; but since May 21st, 2006, this blog has stood as a record of the type of public servant Congressman Murtha was; and it is important, therefore, for purposes of the integrity of this blog, to keep the record straight.

It is for this reason that I close with this:

While we indeed do extend heartfelt condolences to the family of John Murtha, at the same time, we extend our condolences to the taxpayers whose money, in our opinion, John Murtha usurped and squandered in his efforts to seal his stranglehold on power, to build publicly-funded monuments to himself, and to line his own campaign war chest.

We extend our condolences to our troops, who will never receive an apology for John Murtha's decision to label their mission in Iraq a failure, as a means of cementing his own political fortune with the far-left power structure in congress and their benefactors; thus opening the door to years of badmouthing their mission and/or outright verbal sabotage by high ranking democrat officials.

But most of all, we extend our deepest condolences to the Haditha Marines and their loving families, who will now never receive a formal apology (at least in this lifetime) for their sacred honor being besmirched by Murtha when he told the bald-faced lie about the 'massacre' at Haditha that never happened.

There are people in this world who leave as their legacy an example of how to live their lives in service to others.

Others, like Congressman John P. Murtha, leave as their legacy an example of how not to do it.

As twitter compatriot @wilsonpd stated, "... and may God forgive him for his treachery and perfidy here on earth. Amen!"

And, Amen.

Leo Pusateri
Founder and editor, Murtha Must Go!!

Today Marks an Ignominious Day In History...

2010-02-05T20:41:00.005-06:00

From the NPR blog:

State Rep. John Murtha (D) wins a special congressional election in Pennsylvania's 12th District to fill the seat of the late GOP Rep. John Saylor.

Murtha defeats Republican Harry Fox by just 122 votes. Many observers wondered if this race would give hints about what would happen in November. President Nixon and the GOP are on the defensive over the Watergate scandal, and some read this as a sign that this could be a big Democratic year. But Murtha's close win, in a district that has a narrow Democratic advantage in registration, left both sides with a murky message.

Meanwhile, 36 years later, Murtha still holds the seat.

Yes, and 36 years later, we have a man who narrowly escaped indictment in ABSCAM, engaged in years and years of palm greasing and backroom deals, receiving thousands upon thousands in campaign contributions while doling out millions upon millions of taxpayer dollars in quid-pro-quo earmarks; who is currently under scrutiny for ethics violations and/or outright illegalities* with respect to the PMA and Kuchera Industries scandals, who has placed his name on airports, hospitals and sundry other projects like some Egyptian pharoah, who nearly singlehandedly sabotaged our troops' efforts in Iraq, and who has unapologetically slandered and wrongly besmirched the names and honor of Marines in Haditha in 2005, whose only 'crime' was correctly following rules of engagement while under enemy attack.

Yes, one honest man could have made a difference in 1974.

Too bad John P. Murtha is not an honest man.

It's Only A Matter of Time...

2010-01-17T17:35:00.004-06:00

Play with sharks long enough, and sooner or later, you will get bit:

Kuchera Defense Systems, a Pennsylvania contractor closely tied to Rep. John Murtha and his military earmark machine, has again been barred from getting government contracts, Politico reports.
The Navy put Kuchera on a banned list in December in response to allegations that the company paid kickbacks to win part of an earmark awarded by Murtha to another company. Those allegations arose in a fraud trial for two ex Air Force officers that resulted in convictions last year.

As we have documented on this blog, Jihad Jack Murtha was pronounced an unindicted co-conspirator in the ABSCAM case in the early 1980s. Since then he's skated on corrupt ice for upwards of three decades, and has engaged in questionable tactics since, as documented in droves on every page of this blog.

But Murtha's chickens may be coming, as the good Rev. Wright says, home to roost:

But you have to wonder why a year has passed with no real news on the investigation.

Those close to U.S. Rep. John Murtha, D-Johnstown, predict there will be news and it will be released – or leaked – at a strategic time right before the congressional primary in May or the general elections in November.

You would hope that the 300 employees of Kuchera are not being used as pawns in a political game.

But if you are naive enough to think that such shenanigans don’t go on, you need to shake off your veil of innocence and remember that this is good old American politics.

And "good ol American politics" as usual, as can be attested to as of late in the great state of Massachusetts, is getting a bit old.

We at Murtha Must Go!! certainly look forward to the day when Mr. Murtha can take up residence in the "John P. Murtha State Penitentiary."

Murtha Thumbs His Nose at the Constitution!

2010-01-14T18:16:00.003-06:00

In an at-once shameful and shameless display of tyrannical authority:

PA-12--America has had enough of this scum.

Send him back to his front porch in Johnstown, where the worst he could do is to yell at the kids to keep off his lawn.

MURTHA MUST GO!!

What Price, Treason?

2010-01-05T23:00:00.001-06:00

Despite "Jihad Jack" Murtha's treasonous betrayal of the Haditha Marines (for which he has yet to apologize); despite numerous sweetheart deals with cronies who continually line his campaign coffers; despite documented corruption going all the way back to Abscam in the early 1980s; despite all this and more, PA-12 voters have somehow found it within themselves to hold their collective noses at the polling place and re-elect Murtha, time and time-again. All because of Murtha's reputation of "bringing home the pork" for PA-12.

Yes, PA-12 again and again sold their souls elected a self-serving, traitorous politician in the grand tradition of Huey Long and other kings of corruption, because of the millions upon millions of dollars in booty that the corpulent political pirate brought home for his district.

So, what have the voters of PA-12 received in return for selling their souls?

Not much:

The Post analysis illustrates the fleeting success of some of the companies backed by earmarks. Some of the jobs generated by Murtha's earmarks cost about $2 million each, and scores disappeared as soon as projects were completed.

Peter Fiske, a former defense executive in Murtha's district, said awarding earmarks to fledgling companies often backfires, a problem that might be avoided with a more rigorous assessment of project risks. Fiske helped found RAPT Industries, a company that Murtha forecast would generate 45 new jobs. It shuttered its four-person office this year.

"If you looked at Congressman Murtha's efforts in the same way you look at an investor's efforts, it's easy to see that the business model originally conceived hasn't really panned out in terms of its rate of return, " Fiske said.

This is only the tip of the iceberg, of course. Murtha's self-named monument, the airport to nowhere, despite its hefty price tag, still has few flights. An 8-million dollar radar system continues to go un-utilized, due to the fact that there is no one around who is qualified to operate it.

So, PA-12... what did your 30 pieces of silver you deposit at the polling place every two years get you?

The question remains: In 2010, will you continue to pay your tribute to your faux provider-god, or will you finally come to your senses and do yourself (and your nation) a favor and elect an honest man, for once.

BOI Finds LtCol Chessani Not Guilty

2009-12-14T12:13:00.002-06:00

I just got TMLC's press release on breaking news that a Board Of Inquiry, aka BOI, has found Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani not guilty of misconduct. Here's the heart of their statement:

ANN ARBOR, MI – Late last Friday afternoon (Eastern Standard Time), after three hours of deliberation, the military Board of Inquiry ruled LtCol Chessani was not guilty of misconduct and should not be demoted.

Nevertheless, the Board’s ruling produced a mixed result. It ruled Chessani must now retire because he displayed “substandard performance” by failing to conduct a more detailed investigation of the civilians killed as a result of the house clearing actions of four Marines after they were ambushed in Haditha, Iraq on November 19, 2005.

The Board’s decision came after a 1½ hour impassioned closing argument on behalf of LtCol Chessani made by Thomas More Law Center attorney Robert Muise. Muise argued Chessani was a scapegoat to appease the anti-war media and anti-war politician John Murtha. “Here’s your scapegoat. Here’s your fall guy,” said Muise as he pointed at Chessani, who sat silently at the defense table.

The BOI's requiring Lt. Col. Chessani to retire is a bitter pill for me to swallow. I can't even imagine what that ruling means to Lt. Col. Chessani. This is more proof that John Murtha's anti-war diatribe was politically motivated. It's further proof that the gutless wonder from Johnstown, PA, doesn't put the troops first.

There's no longer any arguing that Murtha put political motivations ahead of his consideration of the Haditha Marines. He didn't get a single fact straight in making these accusations, as I've proved with this timeline. He didn't wait for the investigation to be completed. He lied about where he got his information from.

“It’s much worse than was reported in Time magazine,” Murtha, a Democrat, former Marine colonel and Vietnam war veteran, told reporters on Capitol Hill. “There was no firefight. There was no [bomb] that killed those innocent people,” Murtha explained, adding there were “about twice as many” Iraqis killed than Time had reported.

According to the findings of facts, there's no question that there was a firefight that night in Haditha. In fact, then-Capt. Jeffrey Dinsmore refuted Murtha's allegations with his testimony:

The battalion S2 officer made a full and complete report based on his monitoring of the day’s events and the intelligence he and others had amassed then and previous days. As we wrote at the time, the PowerPoint after-action report he sent up the command ladder proved to all the higher officers that the incident warranted no further investigation.

Capt. Dinsmore watched the firefight by monitoring the drone footage as the UAVs circled over the scene of the firefight. You can't get more direct refutation of Murtha's accusations than that.

To review, here's what Rep. Murtha said when first questioned where he got his information from:

Asked about his sources during a midday briefing on Iraq policy in the Capitol, Murtha confidently replied, “All the information I get, it comes from the commanders, it comes from people who know what they’re talking about.” Although Murtha said that he had not read any investigative reports by the military on the incident, he stressed, “It’s much worse than reported in Time magazine.”

That's a bunch of BS. We know this because he quickly changed his story:

Murtha, a Pennsylvania Democrat, is being sued by one of the accused Marines for libel. He had told The Philadelphia Inquirer that Gen. Michael Hagee had given him the information on which he based his charge that Marines killed innocent civilians.

But a spokesman for the Marine Corps said Hagee briefed Murtha on May 24 about Haditha. Murtha had made comments on the case as early as May 17. On May 17, for example, he said at a news conference, “Our troops overreacted because of the pressure on them and they killed innocent civilians in cold blood.”

The last I checked, the Commandant of the Marine Corps isn't an officer in the field. It wouldn't be a stretch to think that Marine Corps Commandant is stationed in the Pentagon.

What's more is that Gen. Hagee didn't brief Murtha until a week after he'd made his accusations.

The charges have been dropped against Capt. McConnell, Capt. Stone, Sgt. de la Cruz, LCpl Tatum and LCpl. Sharratt. Lt. Grayson was found not guilty. SSgt. Frank Wuterich is the only man left of the 8 Haditha Marines that hasn't been acquitted or had his charges dropped.

It's time that the military end this persecution of SSgt. Wuterich. The murder charges have been dropped against the Marines fighting in the firefight. The so-called cover-up has now been dealt with. I've said from the start that there wasn't a cover-up despite what Murtha said. Now that's an official finding of fact.

It's also time for the gutless wonder from Johnstown to publicly apologize for his political anti-military accusations. Finally, it's time for Murtha to retire from the House. He's exceptionally corrupt in addition to his willing to throw the Haditha Marines under the bus.

Cross-Posted at LFR.

A "Thank You" to Jihad Jack...

2009-12-01T22:38:00.003-06:00

This LTE was published in the Indiana Gazette:

Recently in this paper a thank-you letter to U.S. Rep. John Murtha, D-Johnstown, was written by a man from Homer City. I also have some things to thank Mr. Murtha for.

First, I want to thank him for his service as a Marine; of course, Benedict Arnold also served this great nation honorably for a time before he sold out.

Thanks for calling your fellow Marines cold-blooded killers. Our enemies loved that.

Thanks for not apologizing to those fine soldiers when they were all found innocent. They deserved better.

Thanks for buying your votes with our taxpayer dollars. That's big of you.

Thanks for not having even one meeting over the past summer with the people of your district to hear their/our voices. That was cowardly.

Thanks for making the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington's list of ``Most Corrupt Politicians in Washington, D.C.'' for the fifth year in a row. Now that takes some doing.

Finally, Mr. Murtha, thank you for showing exactly who you are in front of the entire world.

My thanks are obviously sarcastic, but your actions are a matter of public record. If people still vote for you after all of this, then they will get exactly what they deserve.

Terry Anderson

Indiana

Does anyone from PA-12 have the cajones to write such a letter to the Tribune Democrat? Or has Jihad Jack Murtha actually bought the votes through the taxpayers' largesse.

When it Comes to Corruption,

2009-11-05T17:58:00.002-06:00

Murtha leads the way:

While it would be wrong to tar all of those who earn their living in and around government from the Congress to the White House, Will Rogers' crack way back in the 1930s that the United States has the best legislature money can buy continues to be validated by a monotonous repetition of scandals year after year.

The latest inadvertently leaked score card from the House Ethics Committee should resolve any doubt about this. According to news accounts of the panel's report, more than 30 lawmakers and several of their aides are under investigation to one degree or another on issues that include lobbying and influence peddling. Seven members of a highly influential House subcommittee that controls Pentagon spending are under scrutiny over allegations they steered money to clients of a lobbying firm in return for campaign donations.
That's half the membership of the subcommittee whose chairman is high profile John Murtha of Pennsylvania. Murtha's activities, through the use of earmarks, have been the subject of inquiries for some time and it now looks like a mixed bag of Democrat and Republican colleagues have done their best to copper their campaigns with the same tactics.

Way to go, Jihad Jack--they're learning from the best at being the worst.

But it gets even better...errr... worse:

Under O’Toole’s jurisdiction now falls the decision concerning the Murtha-supported effort to make the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC) “the world’s leading facility for manufacturing vaccines by 2013, potentially a $1 billion venture.”

Mysterious players in private equity, pharmaceutical, and lobbying worlds have been working for years to get to the point where one of their own -- a fellow Murtha supporter and contributor like O’Toole -- can reward them with huge federal contracts. As someone affiliated and closely aligned with the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, the conflict of interest before O’Toole is clear, but will she really be able to resist the pressure to reward Murtha’s cronies with millions upon millions in taxpayer-funded, government contracts?

We've chronicled Murtha's dealings with UPMC and/or Pennsylvania University here here, here, here, and here.

As Michael Golfarb concludes:

Prediction: coming soon to western Pennsylvania with the support of Harry Reid, Arlen Specter and of course, Tara O’Toole, will be the John Murtha Center for Biosecurity to go along with the John Murtha Airport and the John P. Murtha Institute for Homeland Security.

With any luck, we will one day add the John P. Murtha State Penitentiary, and Mr. Murtha himself will be one of its most celebrated occupants.

Corruption, Inc.

2009-10-24T20:28:00.004-05:00

In yet anther instance of quid pro quo and pay-to-play politics, Boss John "Jihad Jack" Murtha pours millions of taxpayer dollars to buy even more votes! (emphases added)

Working with two of the most powerful members of a House subcommittee that controls Pentagon spending, the company also hired lobbying firms that employed former top aides of both the Democratic lawmakers and Mr. Murtha's brother. Company executives and their lobbyists donated thousands of dollars to the two congressmen.
Soon, money flowed the other way.
Between 2003 and 2009, Mr. Murtha and Mr. Moran helped deliver $12 million to MobilVox in earmarks — money that is set aside by lawmakers for pet projects in the government's annual spending bills. The latest House defense spending bill introduced and pushed through by Mr. Murtha includes an additional $2 million earmark for MobilVox requested by Mr. Moran. The bill is currently pending in conference committee.

Hey PA-12-- do you feel like taking a shower yet?

~Can't Buy Me Love~

2009-10-15T21:14:00.003-05:00

'Cause I don't care too much for money, money can't buy me love

Not only is it a great retro Beatles tune, it's a song that Jihad Jack Murtha is getting to know quite well:

A Democratic congressional candidate in Florida returned a campaign check from House Appropriations Defense Subcommittee Chairman John Murtha’s PAC, offering further evidence that Democrats in competitive races are worried about being linked to Murtha, who has come under intense scrutiny for his earmarking practices.

Lori Edwards, running in a GOP-leaning district in Florida, gave back $1,000 in Murtha money earlier this summer, shortly before the House killed a resolution from Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) demanding a probe into earmarks and contributions related to the now-defunct PMA Group lobbying firm, run by former Appropriations Committee aide Paul Magliocchetti. The returned check was revealed in the October campaign finance reports released Wednesday.

More than 100 House members secured earmarks for clients of the PMA Group in the Murtha-written fiscal 2008 defense spending bill alone, and those members had taken in more than $1.8 million in campaign contributions from the PMA Group’s political action committee and its employees since 2001, according to CQ Politics.

Murtha, the most prolific in securing earmarks for PMA clients, had received the second most campaign contributions from the group, behind fellow defense appropriator Pete Visclosky of Indiana.

Flake spent months trying to pressure the House to force an ethics investigation, and around the time Edwards returned her Murtha money, more Democrats were beginning to distance themselves from Murtha. Though Democratic leaders were able to fend off the Flake efforts, 29 Democrats — mostly from swing districts — voted with Flake on one of his Murtha-related resolutions.

Well, Jack--it looks like pretty soon we're gonna have to tie a pork chop around your neck just to get a junkyard dog to play with you.

Murtha: King of Wasted Taxpayer Dollars

2009-09-21T21:04:00.006-05:00

Of course, we at Murtha Must Go!! (as well as other outlets) have been rightly portraying Murtha s the "King of Pork." While this is wholly accurate, I believe that once in a while it is more than worthy to point out that "porkbarrel" spending is invariably the spending of other people's money--Yours and My money, to be exact. Take this story by the Washington Post:

INDIANA, Pa. -- The buzzer is broken at the John P. Murtha Institute for Homeland Security, and a note invites visitors, "Please knock." On a summer afternoon, a lone intern answers the door of the mostly empty basement offices that through the years have overseen $50 million in federal money awarded to projects designed to make the nation safer.

Named for the chairman of the powerful House Appropriations subcommittee on defense, who has shepherded most of its funding, the Murtha Institute was supposed to embark on projects to protect the country from terrorists and clean up environmental dangers. Much of the work went to companies and friends close to the congressman, and few of the projects met their goals, a Washington Post investigation shows.

But its spotty performance and internal turmoil have not deterred Murtha (D-Pa.) or his alma mater, Indiana University of Pennsylvania, which houses the center, from seeking more money or dreaming big about the future.

Plans are underway to move the Murtha Institute from its dormitory basement suite to a $53 million IUP athletic arena and conference center now under construction. Murtha secured a $3 million federal earmark for the building two years ago, and he sought another earmark this year before abruptly changing course as investigations of his defense appropriations and lobbying connections heated up. Murtha redirected some of that request to IUP research.

This largesse, folks, is not only made up of "other people's money," it is financed with YOUR taxpayer dollars.

Folks, in these trying times, "politics as usual" shouldn't cut it.

If Jihad Jack had pulled his ponzi schemes anywhere outside what should be the hallowed halls of Congress, Jack Murtha would be now be sitting in the John P. Murtha Penitentiary.

It's now more apparent than ever that Murtha Must Go!!

Finally, a project worthy of Murtha's Mettle...

2009-09-19T20:07:00.007-05:00

Murtha lands $2 million for sewer project.

Seeing as how just about everything that receives taxpayer largesse courtesy of Jihad Jack Murtha gets named after him, I'm just waiting for the newly remodeled facility to be re-named the John P. Murtha Sewer District.

Just sayin.

At the Bidding of the Queen...and other friends in low places...

2009-08-07T20:00:00.005-05:00

John Murtha bows...

Relations between House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., and the Department of Defense grew testy last year when the Pentagon couldn't come up with the aircraft she wanted for congressional travel. But this year the House has a $132 million solution: buy the Air Force more executive jets so Congress can take more junkets.

Roll Call newspaper reports the addition of two unasked-for new Gulfstream 550 jets to the executive aircraft stable at nearby Andrews Air Force Base. It is not even considered an earmark under the rules of the House, just an "expansion" of an existing Air Force mission.

But it isn't hard to trace the influence of House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman John Murtha, D-Pa. When Ms. Pelosi's demands first surfaced in 2007, Mr. Murtha said the Pentagon was making a "mistake" by being uncooperative.

With Rep. Murtha leaning hard on the Pentagon from his position of control over defense spending, the legislative demands got quite aggressive last year. Judicial Watch, a non-profit watchdog group, earlier this year published an e-mail in which a Pelosi staffer complained, "It is my understanding there are no G5s available for the House during the Memorial Day recess. This is totally unacceptable. ... The speaker will want to know where the planes are."

Of course, the high-flying Madame Speaker of the Universe notwithstanding, having never met an earmark he didn't like, Murtha, as usual, was again quick to reward his campaign contributors:

Murtha got 15 earmarks, worth $61.4 million, for companies whose employees or related political action committees (PACs) donated $199,050 to his campaign or leadership committee since 2007. All have offices, and jobs, in Pennsylvania. This is business as usual for Murtha. Federal prosecutors are investigating a defunct lobbying firm, PMA Group, whose defense clients have contributed heavily to Murtha and remain immensely successful at getting earmarks.

My, Jihad Jack, but what a tangled web we weave, when power through corruption is your plan to achieve.

Murtha--It Just Keeps Getting Slimier & Slimier

2009-06-04T20:29:00.003-05:00

Murtha's associates involved in the drug trade?

A Johnstown-area defense firm under investigation for possible contract fraud received an infusion of cash during its start-up years from a narcotics trafficker with whom one of the company's founders admitted engaging in the drug trade.

[SNIP]

Mr. Whorley's $50,000 line of funding, and whether it amounted to a loan or a share of the company, became the subject of a bitter legal battle between the two former partners who, according to a deposition by William Kuchera, were once associates in the narcotics trade.
The role of Mr. Whorley, as well as Mr. Kuchera's past as a marijuana dealer, surfaced amid a federal investigation of the Kuchera companies.
What was unclear was whether Mr. Kuchera's narcotics conviction should have precluded him or his company from receiving a security clearance that would enable the firm to perform defense work.
Department of Defense spokesmen did not respond to requests to explain the firm's status and the possible effects that a felony conviction would have on the Kuchera companies' eligibility for defense work.
Loren Thompson, who heads the Lexington Institute, a Washington-area think tank that deals with defense procurement issues, said he believed a narcotics conviction would be sufficient to disqualify Mr. Kuchera.
"Felony drug convictions are usually enough to disqualify a person for a security clearance, because they go to character," Mr. Thompson said.

[SNIP]

U.S. Rep. John P. Murtha, D-Johnstown, has helped to direct millions of dollars in federal defense appropriations to major defense contractors that sub-contract large portions of the jobs to Kuchera Defense Systems. The Kucheras, their employees and associates are among major contributors to Murtha political campaigns.
There is no indication that Mr. Murtha was aware either of Mr. Kuchera's past or Mr. Whorley's role in the firm's early days.

And, what has become a very typical byline from anyone trying to get answers from Jihad Jack Murtha:

A Murtha spokesman declined comment about the Kucheras today.

Sources close to the probe said federal prosecutors are attempting to determine whether the companies padded their payroll to increase the amount of federal cost-plus contracts, and whether they delivered on millions of dollars in federal contracts steered their way through Mr. Murtha's office.You know John Murtha has lots of things named after him in PA-12, like an airport, a couple of clinics, and a pavilion along with many other monuments to his largesse. We've reported on Murtha's relationship with Kuchera and/or the PMA group since 2006 here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.

In light of the recent revelations in Murtha's behavior, along with his somewhat checkered political past, may I suggest one more memorial, totally fitting to the life to Jihad Jack Murtha: The John P. Murtha Penitentiary.

Breaking News: Jack Murtha, All in the Family, Parte Deux

2009-06-02T21:49:00.005-05:00

Roll Call has the story:

In early 2005, Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.) apparently added language to a tsunami relief bill shifting $8.2 million from a former client of his brother’s lobbying firm to a new client of the same firm.
That earmark is now tangled up in a federal indictment alleging that some of the money was skimmed by contractors and a Defense Department employee for their personal use.
Murtha’s spokesman said that no one in his office has any recollection of the transaction, and the House Appropriations Committee was unable to provide any information about how the language appeared in the tsunami relief bill.
But sources familiar with the appropriations process agreed it was impossible that a provision removing earmarks from one company in Murtha’s district and transferring the money to another company in his district could have been added to the bill without Murtha’s involvement, since he was at the time the ranking member on the subcommittee with jurisdiction over the language.

More regarding Murtha's nepotistic allocation of taxpayer funds, dating back to 2006, can be found here, here, here, here, and here.

h/t @katyInIndy via Twitter

Murtha's Tentacles of Corruption--Extending to "Nonprofits"?

2009-06-02T21:14:00.004-05:00

Now Murtha, Inc. is getting into the charity bizz...

CBS News has learned the FBI is investigating a little-known not-for-profit organization called Commonwealth Research Institute. It's located, like a lot of Rep. John Murtha's, D-Penn., pet projects, in his hometown, Johnstown, Penn.

Commonwealth gets the same benefits as the Salvation Army or any other charity: It doesn't have to pay taxes. But its line of work may be surprising. It's a defense contractor.

"It certainly raises a question," says Dean Zerbe, a former top Senate investigator. He questions Commonwealth's tax exempt status, saying it seems to do business just like any for-profit defense contractor.

"There’s a lot of tests to being a charity, and just saying, ‘Well I’m doing research paid for by the government," said Zerbe, " - if that were the case, I would have 10,000 companies that would tomorrow be a charity."

If Commonwealth were not a charity, it could owe roughly one-third of its profits in taxes. That could add up to millions, on more than $45 million dollars in government contracts. But it pays nothing.

Okay--here comes the juicy part:

Documents show when Commonwealth was formed, company officials touted their connections to "the local Congressman" Murtha.

And, in grand "Murtha fashion,"

For the biggest hint as to what Commonwealth is all about, it may help to know something about its parent company, Concurrent Technologies. Concurrent is another defense contractor in Johnstown, also registered as a charity at the same address. And, with the help of Murtha and The PMA Group, a lobby firm that's also under FBI investigation, Concurrent has gotten a billion dollars-plus in defense contracts and earmarks.

Concurrent employees have also given Murtha’s campaign over $95,000 in donations since 2002.

This isn't the first time Commonwealth has been involved in controversy. Back in 2007, the charity mysteriously paid $26,000 to a Pentagon official who was in between positions at the Pentagon and waiting to be confirmed for a top Air Force procurement position. The official admitted to a Washington Post reporter that he hadn’t done any work to earn the Commonwealth payment. Less than three weeks after The Post published an article on the controversy, the official committed suicide.

The incident kicked off an investigation at the Pentagon's Inspector General’s office. CBS News has learned that review has been put on hold in light of other active federal investigations into entities connected to John Murtha. Last spring Commonwealth was subpoenaed in a federal investigation into a government defense contract it received that is worth up to $45 million.

You remember Concurrent Technologies. We reported onMurtha's connections with Concurrent here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.

As a matter of fact, we first reported on Murtha's associations with Commonwealth ~~slush fund~~ Research Instutute here.

With Murtha having outlived his usefulness to the leftist media in giving them cover to try to destroy the Iraq war effort, The MSM finally seems to be getting around to be getting up to speed with the corruption that emanates from the office of Jihad Jack Murtha.

But then again, all folks had to do in the first place was to check with us.

The Heat Is On...

2009-05-29T22:14:00.006-05:00

And Jihad Jack Murtha is feeling a bit hot under the collar:

NEW – National media draws Murtha's ire
The Tribune-Democrat
A visibly angry Rep. John Murtha cut his Showcase for Commerce press conference short this morning after a reporters’ questions about Kuchera Defense Systems of Windber, which is under investigation by the federal government.

Kuchera offices were raided in January and the company was suspended from new Navy contracts last month. The Kuchera family and related companies are major campaign contributors for Murtha.

“What’s that got to do with me?” Murtha shot back to a reporter’s question about the investigation. “What do you think? Do you think I oversee these companies? That’s the Defense Department’s job. That’s not my job. You guys write these stories: You don’t have a clue what this is all about.”

But that's exactly what's bothering you, isn't it, Jack Murtha. The media are actually starting to get a clue, the same clue that we at Murtha Must Go!! have had since we started this blog in May of 2006. That you are a self-serving, self-indulgent, arrogant sorry excuse for a public official who thinks he can do whatever he wants to meet his ends, even going so far as to deny Constitutional rights to those who laid their lives on the line to defend them.

But now it isn't so easy, is it Jack. With two Republican challengers, and even a democrat primary challenger, the power you wielded so recklessly is now slipping through your greasy fingers like sands through an hourglass.

When you were giving your party cover when you declared the Iraq war unwinnable in November of 2005, Jack, you were the toast of the town. The darling of every antiwar moonbat, your eyes set greedily upon the majority leader post in Congress, you thought you were untouchable.

And now your plans are unraveling like a cheap $15 suit from the Goodwill, as you finally receive your comeuppance:

Murtha would not answer a question if he would distance himself from Kuchera, and cut the session off when asked if he had hired a lawyer.

“What kind of question is that?” Murtha fumed, leaving the Frank J. Pasquerilla Conference Center, 201 Napoleon St.

The right kind of question, Jack. The kind of question the media should have asked you long ago.

Better late than never, I guess.

Hell's Kitchen's Getting Hotter...

2009-05-28T22:31:00.003-05:00

Not only does Murtha have Lt. Col. (Ret). William Russell and Timothy Burns on the Republican side to contend with, but it also looks like Murtha will have a Primary contender on the democrat side to contend with, as well:

Pennsylvania Rep. John Murtha -- under fire for steering controversial federal money to his district -- has a Navy veteran with a Harvard degree lining up to challenge him for the Democratic nomination next year.

The race for Pennsylvania's 12th District seat is heating up, with the announcement this week that veteran Ryan Bucchianeri, 34, is challenging Murtha for the Democratic nod. Two Republicans are also vying to run against Murtha.

"I invite the residents of Pennsylvania to continue to research the incumbent and ask if the current office holder, who has held this position the last 35 years, still truly represents the best interests of the people of Pennsylvania," Bucchianeri said.

Bucchianeri, of Monongahela, Pa., is targeting the 35-year incumbent, stressing that his Navy service, experience in private industry and youthful perspective would better serve voters in Pennsylvania's southwest corner.

Feeling a little hot under the collar, Jihad Jack?

DoJ Investigating Contractor With Murtha Ties

2009-05-26T04:23:00.002-05:00

This morning, the Washington Post is reporting that the DoJ is investigating a contractor with strong ties to Rep. Murtha:

The Department of Justice is probing a Pennsylvania contractor that has won millions in earmarks and contracts with the help of Rep. John Murtha, according to a new report.

The Washington Post reported Monday that federal investigators are looking into how Mountaintop Technologies got involved in distributing and monitoring local police grants.

The company has been paid hundreds of thousands of dollars to distribute the money, according to the article, but has received at least $36 million worth of earmarks and military contracts over the past eight years, with the help of Murtha, a Pennsylvania Democrat, and no competition.

According to the article, company executives have donated tens of thousands of dollars to Murtha's campaigns and often distributed the police grant funding on behalf of Murtha before fall elections, and the firm even hired the lobbying company where Murtha's brother worked.

Democrats screamed at the top of their lungs about Halliburton getting no-bid contracts. Nevermind the fact that Halliburton was one of only 2 companies in the world equipped to do the things that they were hired to do.

Now we have a another company in Rep. Murtha's network of cronies who is getting no-bid contracts annually being investigated. Instead of launching an ethics investigation into Rep. Murtha, Speaker Pelosi is doing everything possible to prevent a spotlight from shining on Rep. Murtha's reprehensible behavior.

What's particularly troubling to me is that federal grant money was distributed by Mountaintop Technologies right before elections. If I were a cynic, I'd almost think that that sounds alot like taxpayer-funded walking around money. At minimum, the timely disbursement of grants right before an election served as a reminder to these organizations that Rep. Murtha was their sugar daddy in Washington.

Mountaintop Technologies founder David Fyock told the Post that his company won the contracts on merit. "We are pretty darn good at managing contracts," he said.

But law enforcement sources said the police grants drew attention because the firm was a defense company with little law enforcement experience.

Mr. Fyock's explanation is flimsy at best. Whether they're "pretty darn good at managing contracts" or not, the reality is that they made a fistful of money on no-bid contracts that should've been put up for bid. Why shouldn't other companies have the opportunity to get these contracts? Might it be that Rep. Murtha didn't want other companies who weren't part of Murtha's crony network to get the job of distributing these grants?

Here's the opening paragraph of the Washington Post article:

In tiny, cash-strapped Monongahela, Pa., the city clerk was stunned when federal investigators arrived this fall with a subpoena seeking information on a crime-fighting grant she'd never heard of. She takes pride in tracking every dollar in the municipal budget.

Further down the page, we read this:

Over the past five years, a local defense contractor with close ties to Rep. John P. Murtha, a Democrat who has represented southwestern Pennsylvania for three decades, has selected several small police departments in the region to receive $10 million in Justice Department grants.

The company, Mountaintop Technologies, was selected by the lawmaker in a series of earmarks to hand out and monitor the grants. As it distributed the money to the departments, the firm would explain each time that it was arriving through the largess of Murtha, often just before fall elections.

Imagine that. Mountaintop Technologies would "explain each time that it was arriving through the largess of Murtha" and that that largess often happened "just before fall elections."

My cynical said asks whether Murtha's campaign pay Moutaintop Technologies for the PR work they did on his behalf right before elections. It's one thing to hand out these grants. It's another to hand them out with the reminder that a vote for Rep. Murtha will help the grant money flowing.

Let's take this into account, too:

Once she learned from the investigators that Monongahela's police department was getting money outside of normal channels, City Clerk Carole Foglia was disturbed. "I wasn't happy with the situation at all," Foglia said. "I didn't want to be involved in anything that was done improperly, because that's not the way I work in my office. And this was improper. No question about it."

This clerk did the right thing in reporting the unusual nature of the grant distribution. Though I can't be certain, I suspect that Ms. Foglia thought that this sounded alot like hading out walking around money right before an election.

Let's ask these questions of Rep. Murtha:

Why are these grants disbursed right before an election? When did Mountaintop Technologies get these checks? Did Mountaintop Technologies hold these grant checks until the fall for maximuim impact on elections?

It's time we got some answers. Hopefully, the DoJ's investigation won't be short-circuited by Eric Holder or other political appointees in DoJ.

Technorati: Corruption, John Murtha, Mountaintop Technologies, DoJ, Walking Around Money, Elections, Cronyism, RICO, Investigation

Cross-posted at LetFreedomRingBlog

Soros-Funded Ethics Group Calls On Murtha to Step Down

2009-05-13T21:15:00.005-05:00

From here:

CREW executive director Melanie Sloan said, “It is past time for Congress to put an end to Rep. Murtha’s friends and family program. At a time when there are so many competing priorities for scarce taxpayer dollars, we cannot afford to let Rep. Murtha continue wasting our money on unnecessary projects that do little more than secure his power base. Although the House has long turned a blind eye to Rep. Murtha’s feckless conduct, thankfully the Justice Department is on the case. How many more stories must appear before Rep. Murtha is forced from his perch as chairman of Defense Appropriations and denied further opportunity to feather his own nest?”

Isn't it interesting that when Jihad Jack Murtha served the loony left's purpose when he turned traitor and declared the Iraq war unwinnable, he was just the darling of the fever swamp set; with everyone from the D.U. to the Daily Kos to Code Pink just singing his praises. Now that the Left's objectives have been met, re: the election of Barack Hussein Obama, Jihad Jack Murtha has suddenly fell out of favor with the kook left mainstream of the democrat party.

No doubt when Murtha was busy playing turncoat against the Haditha Marines and busy giving aid and comfort to our enemies, he was being wooed with "riches beyond his wildest imagination." San Fran Nan Pelosi backed him for House Majority leader. Code Pink was giving him awards.

And now, their aims having been realized, the Soros Wing of the Democrat Party have cast Murtha off like a cheap prom date.

And it couldn't happen to a nicer guy.

Jihad Jack Murtha Voted To Allow These Men to be in the United States

2009-05-10T16:48:00.004-05:00

So...PA-12... how's that pork workin' for ya now?

(h/t Traveller in Time)

Megalomaniacal Murtha

2009-05-10T15:52:00.009-05:00

ahIFirst he declared the Iraq War all but lost, and more than once called for an immediate withdrawal. Seeing as how the Left just loved him, invited him to all the right parties, and even gave him awards befitting Benedict Arnold, Murtha felt even more brazen in his lust for power, when he declared Marines at Haditha guilty of murder, without any official briefing, again, to further his drive for power.

Then, in 2008, came William Trower Russell. A retired Army Colonel, who still knows the meaning of honor and practices it, Russell had Murtha running scared for the first time in his checkered, scandal-laden political career. So scared was Jihad Jack Murtha that he had to call in Bill Clinton to wag his finger at PA-12 constituents in a last-ditch effort to save his sorry, fat, political backside.

Having won re-election, now Murtha is again usurping his power in another nefarious way:

Russell, a retired Army man who plans another run against Murtha next year, now contends that the congressman’s chief of staff used coarse language while threatening to have the GOP candidate “recalled” to active military duty.

Russell further claims that Murtha’s office has contacted his former commanding officer, also to inquire about a potential recall.

“This is a brazen abuse of power and a threat to the integrity of both the Department of Defense and the Congress of the United States,” Russell wrote in a recent fundraising letter to local voters.

Russell, who last year lost by about 15 percentage points to the veteran congressman, said the encounter with Murtha Chief of Staff John Hugya happened at a March banquet benefitting the National Rifle Association in Washington County.

“To my face, (Hugya) said, ‘What are you going to do when we get the new Secretary of the Army seated and have your (expletive) recalled to active duty,’ ” Russell wrote.

Murtha’s office is not denying that the exchange took place.

But spokesman Matt Mazonkey also claims that Russell’s letter leaves out an important part of the conversation.

“Mr. Hugya, who is a retired Marine Colonel, was reminding Mr. Russell that his conduct while in uniform during the last campaign was in violation of sections of the uniform code of military justice” and a Department of Defense directive, Mazonkey said in a written statement.

That directive forbids those on active military duty from campaigning for federal office.

The contention, apparently, is that Russell should be recalled so that he can face charges for allegedly campaigning while he was on a 90-day, active-duty Army assignment last year.

Those allegations have been brewing since last summer. But Russell still contends they are “absolutely false.”

While he was on duty from April 30 through the end of July, Russell said, “the campaign committee operated independently of me.”

And that, my friends, is absolutely TRUE. William Russell did not personally begin campaigning until his discharge from the Army. His May, 2008 interview on the Michael Savage show was actually taped well before his April activation, and then aired later. But don't let a little thing like the truth get in the way of Jihad Jack Murtha holding on to power like a hooker grasps her last 5 dollar bill.

Bottom line is, to Jack Murtha, the Constitution and the rights it extends may as well be a roll of toilet paper. He will crumple it, trample it, and do anything he can to extend his reach on his power.

Megalomania? You bet.

PA-12-- are you starting to get buyer's remorse yet?

Bill Russell's Tea Party Speech

2009-05-09T16:04:00.002-05:00

Yes, PA-12--you do have an honorable choice:

Murtha: To the Highest Bidder?

2009-05-09T15:57:00.001-05:00

More pay to play politics?

Also of note about O’Toole are her ties to the Democratic Party and Congressman John Murtha. Since 2003, she has contributed a total of $8,300 to the Democratic National Committee, as well as a number of Democratic presidential candidates, including John Kerry, Wesley Clark, Hillary Clinton, and most recently Barack Obama. The only member of congress to whom she has contributed is Murtha. In 2004 and 2005, immediately before and after Murtha earmarked money for her center under the Strategic Biodefense Initiative, she gave him $1,750.

As I’ve noted before, the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center — O’Toole’s center is one of its projects — retains as its lobbying firm Ervin Technical Associates, which has close links to the congressman. UPMC’s PAC and employees have donated heavily to Murtha, including $192,500 in 2006. That was the year after Murtha won an $8.5 million earmark for UPMC -– lobbied for by Ervin Technical -– for a communications network. Ervin Technical is also seeking to win support for a dubious UPMC project which is looking for funding to develop and manufacture biodefense vaccines.

Murtha's Corruption Hitting Closer to Home

2009-05-05T03:16:00.002-05:00

According to this Washington Post article, John Murtha's corruption is hitting close to home. VERY CLOSE. Here's what the Washington Post is reporting:

The headquarters of Murtech, in a low-slung, bland building in a Glen Burnie business park, has its blinds drawn tight and few signs of life. On several days of visits, a handful of cars sit in the parking lot, and no trucks arrive at the 10 loading bays at the back of the building.

Yet last year, Murtech received $4 million in Pentagon work, all of it without competition, for a variety of warehousing and engineering services. With its long corridor of sparsely occupied offices and an unmanned reception area, Murtech's most striking feature is its owner, Robert C. Murtha Jr., 49. He is the nephew of Rep. John P. Murtha, the Pennsylvania Democrat who has significant sway over the Defense Department's spending as chairman of the House Appropriations defense subcommittee.

Robert Murtha said he is not at liberty to discuss in detail what his company does, but for four years it has subsisted on defense contracts, according to records and interviews. He said Murtech's 17 employees "provide necessary logistical support" to Pentagon testing programs that focus on detecting chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear threats, "and that's about as far as I feel comfortable going." Giving more details could provide important clues to terrorist plotters, he said.

How can Robert Murtha say with a straight face that Murtech's 17 employees "provide necessary logistical support" to Pentagon testing programs when the John Murtha earmarks say it's sending $4,000,000 a year to Murtech "for a variety of warehousing and engineering services"? That's $235,000 per person per year for doing....what?

How can a big warehouse have no semi traffic to it? How can this warehouse's offices be almost empty?

People wrongfully complained about Haliburton's no-bid contracts. Haliburton at least did important work for the money they got. Based on the Washington Post's reporters' observations, we don't know if Murtech did anything except collect a government check for doing nothing.

Here's something that'll either have you pulling your hair out or laughing uncontrollably:

Murtha said he does not advertise being the nephew of John Murtha and considers it "unfortunate" that some will unfairly assume Murtech received its federal contracts because of his uncle's influence at the Pentagon.

"If we're not doing our job well, we wouldn't be doing our job," he said. "I'm successful at the work I do because of the skill sets I have...You don't know how good someone is unless you work with them."

I won't trust young Murtha because I can't prove that he's done anything other than collect a government check.

This is suspicious:

During an unannounced visit to Murtech headquarters last week, a reporter asking to talk to the owner was waved away by an employee. "He's not here. Come back another day," said the woman who opened Murtech's security door. "Unfortunately, everybody's stepped out."

But a few minutes later, Murtha emerged and answered questions about the company. In an interview, Murtha expressed concern that publicity could be harmful to his business.

This unnamed woman lied to reporters. Are Murtech employees in the habit of lying like that?

Until Murtech can prove that they're doing vital work for the Pentagon, I won't trust them. That's due mostly to Robert Murtha's actions but it's also fair to question the things that Kit Murtha, Robert's father, and John Murtha, Kit's brother, have done in the past.

This sounds familiar:

A spokesman at Murtha's office did not return calls seeking comment. The lawmaker, a former Marine, has said in the past that he is proud of his family's service to the military and the government.

Some things change. Murtha's 'no comment' policy doesn't though.

Technorati: Murtech, Robert Murtha, Kit Murtha, John Murtha, No-Bid Contracts, Corruption, Culture Of Corruption, Democrats

Cross-posted at LetFreedomRingBlog

All in the Family?

2009-05-04T21:10:00.004-05:00

Not only can Murtha be called the earmark king of the Capitol, but it would seem that he's in charge of his own family syndicate:

WASHINGTON — Representative John P. Murtha, chairman of the House military spending subcommittee and a decorated former Marine, has long acted as a protective Uncle Jack to the Marine Corps. [TELL THAT TO THE SHARRATTS--ED]

Now the corps has named one of his nephews, Col. Brian Murtha, to the office charged with advocating for its interests on Capitol Hill, where Representative Murtha, Democrat of Pennsylvania, helps write the military budget. In relocating to be near the Pentagon, Colonel Murtha has even moved into a unit in the same condominium building where his influential uncle lives in Arlington, Va.

[SNIP]

Nor is Colonel Murtha the first member of the Murtha family to be in a position to profit from his uncle’s influence. The congressman earmarked millions of federal dollars to an institution in his district, St. Vincent College, while the Rev. John F. Murtha, his cousin, was its president. He has directed millions more in earmarks to clients of a firm, KSA Consulting, where until about three years ago his younger brother, Robert Murtha, known as Kit, worked as a lobbyist.
Colonel Murtha is one of Kit Murtha’s sons. Another son, also named Robert Murtha, is a former Marine with a master’s degree in engineering. He previously worked for two military contractors who, seeking earmarks, hired a lobbyist with close ties to Representative Murtha.
Over the last three years, the younger Robert Murtha has operated Murtech Inc., a small contractor in Glen Burnie, Md., that runs a warehouse and offers engineering services. It has received more than $3.5 million in military contracts over the last three years, not including subcontracts through other companies.
He is also a founder of another company, Ocean Energy Systems Inc., which is seeking federal financing to support its research into the generation of power from the motion of waves.
There is no evidence, however, that this nephew has received any earmarks or otherwise benefited from Representative Murtha’s position.
Asked if the family name helped Ocean Energy, the company’s chief executive, Brian Cunningham, said, “It does and it doesn’t.”
Representative Murtha is under so much scrutiny, Mr. Cunningham said, that Robert Murtha “can’t raise his head at all on this, for fear that it will be connected with his uncle.

Oh How The "Mighty" Have Fallen...

2009-04-26T18:54:00.004-05:00

Could the "P" for "Power" turn into a "P" for "Pissant?"

WASHINGTON — So powerful was Representative John P. Murtha at one time that he used to put up billboards in his Western Pennsylvania district declaring that “the P is for Power.” Few in Congress dared disagree: he doled out or withheld billions in federal money each year for lawmakers’ pet projects, better known as earmarks.

Now, however, a string of federal criminal investigations of contractors or lobbyists close to Mr. Murtha, the top Democrat on the defense appropriations subcommittee, are threatening to undermine his backroom clout.
In the weeks since the news that prosecutors had raided the offices of the PMA Group — a lobbying firm founded by a former Murtha associate that became a gateway to his office and his biggest source of campaign money — about two dozen rank-and-file Democrats have risked his wrath by calling for a House ethics investigation of the matter. One Democrat has even foresworn seeking earmarks for the military contractors in his district because of ethical concerns about the process.

Jack "Pissant" Murtha--once the anti-war, anti-America kooks' dearest darling, for ostensibly giving the democrats in congress and in the Senate cover to be able to bang the "defeat at all costs!" drum, has now outlived his usefulness.

By the time this is over, ol' Jack "Pissant" Murtha will be lucky to get his dog to play with him

Couldn't happen to a nicer guy.

Murtha: Shaking Down Contributors?

2009-04-21T21:28:00.003-05:00

Yid With Lid points us to a CBS Report that not only is Murtha doing quid-pro-quo pay-to-play earmarks with defense contractors, he is acting like a two-bit racketeer in the process:

That line was crossed in one case, according to a defense contractor who spoke to us on condition of anonymity for fear of losing government contracts.

The contractor was set to receive $1 million tax dollars. He said the military told him the money would come through a company called Commonwealth Research Institute, whose parent company, Concurrent Technologies, ranked among the largest earmark recipients. Both were set up with Murtha's help in his own hometown. The defense contractor said Commonwealth officials told him to get the money, he should "consider opening an office" in Johnstown, Murtha's hometown, and chided his company for not giving "enough campaign contributions to Murtha," and not making "a showing at Murtha's annual defense contractor fair."

The contractor told CBS News: "I wouldn't do it. We're just not going to play." He didn't get the funds.

"You called this a 'shakedown?'" Attkisson asked Ellis.

"If you want the money then you've got to do these things, and that's being shaken down," Ellis said.

We've many times documented Murtha's up-front-and cozy relationship with Concurrent Technologies, a concern Murtha's taxpayer-funded earmarks helped create.

Now it looks more and more that Concurrent Technologies is nothing more than a front for Murtha's earmark- and campaign-fund laundering.

How much more corruption are you willing to withstand, PA-12?

The Persecution of Lt. Col. Chessani Continues

2009-04-17T12:46:00.001-05:00

Thursday night, the military kept the persecution of Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani going by filing a motion with the Navy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals. Here's the statement issued by Thomas More Law Center:

Yesterday evening, government prosecutors filed a motion with the Navy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals (NMCCA), asking that the unanimous ruling of a 3-judge panel in favor of LtCol Jeffery Chessani, USMC, be reconsidered by all 9 judges of the court. A majority of these 9 judges would have to agree to take the case.

On March 17, 2009, the 3-judge panel of NMCCA unanimously vindicated the ruling by Colonel Steven A. Folsom, USMC, dismissing all charges against LtCol Chessani on the grounds of Unlawful Command Influence. LtCol Chessani is the senior-most officer criminally charged as a result of the much-publicized and ill-described “Haditha massacre.”

The Thomas More Law Center, a national public interest law firm based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, represents LtCol Chessani alongside his detailed military attorneys LtCol Jon Shelburne, USMC; Capt Jeffrey King, USMC; and Capt Kyle Kilian, USMC.

Richard Thompson, President and Chief Counsel of the Thomas More Law Center, commented, “The way our government has treated this true American hero is outrageous. After spending over 20 years in loyal service to his nation and considered one of the best combat officers in Iraq, the government is giving Jeffrey Chessani less legal consideration than it is giving the terrorists held at Guantanamo.”

In dismissing the charges against LtCol Chessani, Col Folsom described Unlawful Command Influence as the “the mortal enemy of military justice.” But despite the solid legal basis for the ruling, the government appealed the decision to NMCCA. NMCCA heard oral arguments on the government’s appeal on October 17, 2008.

In seeking a reconsideration by the entire panel of NMCCA, government prosecutors now argue that the 3-judge panel misunderstood the difference between an officer’s rank and his billet (job). Essentially, the government argues that a full colonel in the Marine Corps could not unlawfully influence a Lieutenant Colonel if they held similar billet (job) positions.

The Law Center has a week to file a response to the government’s motion for reconsideration.

If the NMCCA does grant the government’s motion, the government then has 60 days to appeal to the Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces (CAAF) and then even to the U.S. Supreme Court.

The Thomas More Law Center defends and promotes the religious freedom of Christians, time-honored family values, and the sanctity of human life through litigation, education, and related activities. It does not charge for its services. The Law Center is supported by contributions from individuals, corporations and foundations, and is recognized by the IRS as a section 501(c)(3) organization. You may reach the Thomas More Law Center at (734) 827-2001 or visit our website at www.thomasmore.org.

Lt. Col. Chessani was charged with failing to launch a full investigation into a massacre that didn't happen. Let's remember that the murder charges against the Haditha Marines actually caught in the firefight have been dropped. Let's remember that then-Capt. Jeffrey Dinsmore put together an extensive PowerPoint presentation that got sent up the chain of command.

Especially considering the fact that then-Capt. Jeffrey Dinsmore's PowerPoint presentation went up the chain of command, how can persecutors say with a straight face that Lt. Col. Chessani didn't commit to a full investigation? This is the military persecuting its own war heroes.

Finally, let's remember that Col. Folsom's ruling was that military leaders exerted undue command influence. These leaders essentially told the investigators what they'd find before their investigation concluded. (Doesn't that sound similar to Rep. Murtha saying that he knew there was a coverup somewhere?)

It's time for the military's persecution of Lt. Col. Chessani and SSgt. Wuterich. It's time that the military admitted that the Haditha Marine investigation was about politics, not about investigating a real scandal.

Cross-posted at LFR.

Murtha: Unaccountable

2009-04-16T21:36:00.005-05:00

For now, that is.

It seems like a three-judge panel thought that Murtha's playing judge, jury & executioner without due process toward a group of Marines that fateful day in Haditha, when they were in fact only following ROE, was within the scope of Murtha's duties.

A three-judge panel from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit dismissed Wuterich's suit Tuesday. It ruled that the powerful Pennsylvania Democrat was protected by a 1988 law that says federal employees cannot be sued for things they do and say in the course of their official duties.

But thankfully, Jihad Jack Murtha ain't getting out of it that easily:

PITTSBURGH (AP) — U.S. Rep. John Murtha shouldn't be immune from a defamation lawsuit for saying Marines killed Iraqi women and children "in cold blood," because the lawmaker's comments came outside the scope of his official duties, a former Marine's attorney said.

The attorney, Noah Geary, on Wednesday filed an amended federal defamation lawsuit on behalf of Justin Sharratt, 24, a former lance corporal from Canonsburg. The new complaint, which adds 13 paragraphs to a lawsuit originally filed in September, was prompted by the dismissal of a similar suit against Murtha by Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich.

GOOD ON JUSTIN!!

The revised complaint makes it "abundantly clear that Murtha was, in fact, acting outside the scope of his employment when he slandered Justin Sharratt" and, therefore, can be held liable for his comments, Geary told The Associated Press.

The new complaint also accuses Murtha of making the comments for "purely personal reasons," namely, to curry favor with U.S. Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., who would be selected Speaker of the House a few months later.

It should be abundantly clear to any thinking individual that Murtha, who took an oath to defend and uphold the Constitution, was indeed acting outside the bounds of his official duties when he threw the right to presumption of innocence out the window so that he could curry favor with the kook left (a/k/a Nancy Pelosi).

Apparently, the "three judges" must have been partying the night before the decision, because they sure weren't thinking clearly.

You know, it's just too bad that Murtha is too much of a self-serving, self-indulgent mouse to man up and admit he was wrong. When he turned in his Marine dress blues and donned a suitjacket, Murtha unfortunately also checked his honor at the door.

What a pitiful man he is.

Kudos to Justin Sharratt for going after rat-fink Murtha for all he's worth! Hooah!

Murtha Padding His Buddys' Pockets...AGAIN..

2009-04-07T22:35:00.007-05:00

In what looks like a Blagojevich-style pay-to-play scheme--to the tune of over 1 BILLION dollars! Harper's has the details:

A few weeks ago, I reported here on a plan by Congressman John Murtha’s friends and campaign donors to obtain up to $1 billion for a controversial project to build a biodefense manufacturing facility. The players included:

Lobby shop Ervin Technical Associates (ETA), founded by Jim Ervin, a retired Air Force lieutenant colonel, who the Wall Street Journal describes as a “longtime friend” of Murtha.

Private equity firm Four Seasons Ventures, which Ervin also helped found and which “primarily invests in technologies… that will garner United States government support.” Four Seasons invests in at least two firms that have received federal earmarks with Murtha’s help, including PharmaThene, a biodefense firm–which also retains ETA as its lobbyist.

The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, which also retains ETA and which is a major donor to Murtha.

These three outfits have been seeking funding for a manufacturing plant that would produce biodefense products, even though the grounds for such a facility (as explained in the original story) are highly dubious. The players have been putting the project together since at least 2005, and UPMC conducted a $3 million “conceptual study” funded by the Defense Applied Research Projects Agency (DARPA).

Read the whole thing. Ken Silverstein concludes:

In other words, Murtha has been supporting a highly questionable project that has benefited an interlocking network of his political funders and friends in private industry.

The Q & A is quite elusive, and Murtha has been a master of dipping his toes into the quicksand of corruption that has been the hallmark of his career without getting his entire body wet. Remember Abscam?

"I want to deal with you guys awhile before I make any transactions at all, period.... After we've done some business, well, then I might change my mind...."

..."I'm going to tell you this. If anybody can do it -- I'm not B.S.-ing you fellows -- I can get it done my way." he boasted. "There's no question about it."...

But the reluctant Murtha wouldn't touch the $50,000. Here on secret videotape was this all-American hero, tall and dignified in a disheveled way, explaining why he wasn't quite ready to accept the cash.

"All at once," he said, "some dumb [expletive deleted] would go start talking eight years from now about this whole thing and say [expletive deleted], this happened. Then in order to get immunity so he doesn't go to jail, he starts talking and fingering people. So the [S.O.B.] falls apart."...

"You give us the banks where you want the money deposited," offered one of the bagmen.

"All right," agreed Murtha. "How much money we talking about?"

"Well, you tell me."

"Well, let me find out what is a reasonable figure that will get their attention," said Murtha, "because there are a couple of banks that have really done me some favors in the past, and I'd like to put some money in....["]

The dialogue continued as follows:

Amoroso: Let me ask you now that we're together. I was under the impression, OK, and I told Howard [middleman Howard Criden] what we were willing to pay, and [This is where the available videotape begins]I went out, I got the $50,000. OK? So what you're telling me, OK, you're telling me that that's not what you know....

Murtha: I'm not interested...

Amoroso: OK.

Murtha: ...At this point, [This is where the available videotape ends] you know, we do business together for a while. Maybe I'll be interested and maybe I won't.... Right now, I'm not interested in those other things. Now, I won't say that some day, you know, I, if you made an offer, it may be I would change my mind some day.

Yep.. Jihad Jack was more than ready to wheel and deal, if the price was right. Without a question, in my opinion, John P. Murtha is the biggest con-man alive in Congress today.

***UPDATE***

Glenn Reynolds has even more on Murtha's abject, in-your-face corruption:

Congress: The PMA Noose. “Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.), chairman of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense, released dozens of earmark requests late Thursday, including millions of dollars for projects sponsored by former PMA clients. Rep. Peter Visclosky (D-Ind.), who in previous years had sought earmarks for PMA clients, released his earmark list without a single request for a former PMA client.”

Even with the PMA scandal fresh in the minds of the public, even in the midst of an intensive FBI investigation, the brazenly, genetically corrupt Jack Murtha is still doling out the taxpayer-funded goodies to his buddies.

To call it chutzpah would be the understatement of the century.

A Little Fact-Checking Is In Order

2009-04-07T09:36:00.003-05:00

I knew that I'd have to write a fact-checking post after reading Bing West's op-ed. While I agree with Mr. West's statement that "Murtha smeared the reputation of a generation of Marines." I even agree that "bestowing the navy’s highest civilian medal, the Distinguished Public Service Award, upon Rep. John P. Murtha (D., Pa.) last month" was wrong. Here's where I disagree with Mr. West:

In May of 2006, military investigators recommended court-martial trials for seven Marines involved in the killings of 24 Iraqi civilians after a Marine was killed in the violent town of Haditha. Marine generals went to Capitol Hill to alert the key committees about the forthcoming trials and, after being briefed, Representative Murtha held a world-famous press conference.

“They killed innocent civilians in cold blood. They actually went into the houses and killed women and children,” Murtha thundered. “But I will not excuse murder. And this is what happened. There’s no question in my mind about it.”

Those two short paragraphs have alot of misstatements of fact in them, which I highlighted in this post.

First, "24 innocent civilians" weren't killed in the Haditha uprising; 16 innocent civilians were killed because 8 identified insurgents used them as human shields. This information is part of the PowerPoint presentation then-Capt. Jeffrey Dinsmore put together after the firefight.

Second, Marine generals didn't brief Rep. Murtha prior to his infamous press conference:

Asked about his sources during a midday briefing on Iraq policy in the Capitol, Murtha confidently replied, “All the information I get, it comes from the commanders, it comes from people who know what they’re talking about.” Although Murtha said that he had not read any investigative reports by the military on the incident, he stressed, “It’s much worse than reported in Time magazine.”
The Marine Corps later corrected the record:
Murtha, a Pennsylvania Democrat, is being sued by one of the accused Marines for libel. He had told The Philadelphia Inquirer that Gen. Michael Hagee had given him the information on which he based his charge that Marines killed innocent civilians.

But a spokesman for the Marine Corps said Hagee briefed Murtha on May 24 about Haditha. Murtha had made comments on the case as early as May 17. On May 17, for example, he said at a news conference, “Our troops overreacted because of the pressure on them and they killed innocent civilians in cold blood.”

A spokeswoman for Murtha was not immediately available.

Mr. West's article does a good job outlining the atrocities visited upon the Marines by those that theoretically "support the troops, just not the war." Here's one such example:

Inevitably, the administration was blamed for Haditha. The New York Times editorial page said: “It will not do to focus blame narrowly on the Marine unit suspected of carrying out these killings and ignore the administration officials, from President Bush on down, who made the chances of this sort of disaster so much greater by deliberately blurring the rules governing the conduct of American soldiers in the field.”

Don't you just have to appreciate the fact that the Paper Of Record waited to find out all the facts before playing judge, jury and executioner? Then again, that's what I expect from people that are more interested in pushing a leftist agenda rather than reporting important news.

As Ed highlights in this post, the NYTimes will go to any length to criticize Republicans. Here's what they wrote about their latest corrupt polling:

These sometimes turbulent weeks, marked by new initiatives by Mr. Obama, attacks by Republicans and more than a few missteps by the White House, do not appear to have hurt the president. Americans said they approved of Mr. Obama’s handling of the economy, foreign policy, Iraq and Afghanistan; fully two-thirds said they approved of his overall job performance.
By contrast, just 31 percent of respondents said they had a favorable view of the Republican Party, the lowest in the 25 years the question has been asked in New York Times/CBS News polls.

Here's their dirty little secret:

It’s not unusual for the Gray Lady to cook the numbers, either, to make sure their poll shows that support. This is the breakout in their demographics on page 23:
Democrats - 39%
Republicans - 23%
Independents - 30%

A media outlet that's more interested in eliminating key facts in their attempt to skewer an ideological enemy than it's interested in reporting truth isn't far removed from the worst of tabloid journalism. A media outlet that's willing to throw wrongfully accuse genuine American heroes of cold-blooded murder isn't a media outlet of sterling repute.

Similarly, an important congressman who'll willingly misrepresent the actions of our military is a reprehensible human being.

In that sense, John Murtha and the NY Times deserve each other.

Technorati: Haditha, John Murtha, Corruption, NY Times, Media Bias, Jeffrey Dinsmore, USMC, Intelligence, PowerPoint, Firefight, Insurgents

Cross-posted at California Conservative

He's Baaaack!

2009-04-01T18:02:00.003-05:00

Lt. Colonel William Russell (Ret.) is going to have another run at Jihad Jack!

PA-12 will once again make a choice in 2010: Honor, or corruption. Genuine respect and honor for our men and women in uniform, or using our military and earmarks as political footballs.

My fervent hope is that PA-12, once faced with the ongoing, inescapable conclusion that their congressman is a liar, an opportunist, and a thief, will indeed choose the former.

Hooah!!

Murtha: “If I’m Corrupt, It’s Only Because I’m Trying To Help”

2009-04-01T12:06:00.002-05:00

I've heard alot of stupid excuses made in the process of justifying excessive abuse of the earmark system. Some are mildly amusing. Others are outright howlers. Such is the case with earmark apologist extraordinaire Rep. John Murtha. Here's how the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette quoted the King of Earmarks:

Mr. Murtha, a 76-year-old Marine veteran schooled in the blunt-knuckle deal-making that defined politics here, is contrition-free when it comes to his success.

"If I'm corrupt, it's because I take care of my district," Mr. Murtha said. "My job as a member of Congress is to make sure that we take care of what we see is necessary. Not the bureaucrats who are unelected over there in whatever White House, whether it's Republican or Democrat. Those bureaucrats would like to control everything. Every president would like to have all the power and not have Congress change anything. But we're closest to the people."

Rep. Murtha isn't close to "the people." He's close to the lobbyists. What happens the minute Rep. Murtha stops representing PA-12? Will Pittsburgh's economy ruen to shambles? I suspect it might.

It's true that he's brought short term relief. It's doubtful, though, whether he's helped western Pennsylvania develop policies that lead to sustained prosperity. Their prosperity seems to exist only to the extent that the federal government keeps dumping money into the district.

I'll further take issue with the notion that he's corrupt only because he's trying to help the people of PA-12. He's corrupt because he isn't a man of integrity.

Technorati: Integrity, John Murtha, Corruption, Earmarks, Ethics, Lobbyists, Prosperity

Cross-posted at LetFreedomRingBlog

The Malfeasance Never Seems to End...

2009-03-20T22:34:00.003-05:00

That is, when you're "Jihad Jack" Murtha:

WASHINGTON - A Pennsylvania defense research center regularly consulted with two "handlers" close to US Representative John Murtha, a Pennsylvania Democrat, as it collected nearly $250 million in federal funding through the lawmaker, according to documents obtained by The Washington Post and sources familiar with the funding requests. The center then channeled a significant portion of the funding to companies that were among Murtha's campaign supporters.

The two advisers included a lobbyist for PMA, a firm with close ties to Murtha that is under federal investigation for allegedly making illegal contributions by reimbursing donors to the Pennsylvania lawmaker and other members of Congress. The center also relied on advice from a longtime Murtha friend who now works on the congressman's staff.
The Electro-Optics Center, created by Murtha a decade ago under the auspices of Pennsylvania State University, was envisioned as a way to spur new high-tech industry and create jobs in economically depressed western Pennsylvania. Last year, the US attorney in Pittsburgh received budget materials, memos, and e-mails from inside the center documenting how closely its managers conferred with PMA about the best ways to get its projects funded in the federal budget, according to two sources.
Several of the center's partners hired PMA for lobbying. In the 2008 budget, PMA clients received $299 million in defense earmarks through Murtha and other lawmakers. PMA and its clients gave $775,000 in contributions to Murtha in the last election cycle. A PMA lobbyist and a close associate of Murtha's helped make many key decisions about which research and contractors would get the federal money flowing to the center, according to the documents.
Typically, center director Karl Harris worked with the lobbyist to prepare funding wish lists, which were described in some of the records as "requests for Mr. Murtha to carry." The requests were then sent to the congressman's staff, according to the records. The lists offered detailed specifications on how much, and where in the budget, money should be added for projects desired by the center and the contractors.

Had enough yet, PA-12? Had enough yet, Johnstown Tribune Democrat?

As I've stated before, it will bring great personal satisfaction when the day comes that Congressman "Jihad Jack" Murtha is frog-marched and perp-walked in front of a hundred cameras in a Federal court. The PMA group investigation and its concommitant baggage it brings for John Murtha couldn't happen to a nicer guy.

W.T.F?

2009-03-20T14:58:00.006-05:00

Murtha has gotten an award... from the Navy?

The U.S. Navy awarded U.S. Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa., its Distinguished Public Service Award, triggering an Internet campaign to have Navy Secretary Donald C. Winter withdraw it.

Murtha, who publicly accused U.S. Marines of cold-blooded murder in a firefight in Haditha, Iraq, and was caught on camera in the Abscam scandal appearing to negotiate a bribe, was honored by the Navy for his "selfless devotion to the Nation's Sailors and Marines."

The award credits him with making sure the military services "were provided the resources necessary to effectively conduct the Global War on Terrorism."

"His courageous leadership, vision, and loyalty to the men and women of the Department of the Navy greatly contributed to their quality of life and helped create the most modern and highly trained fighting force in history," the honor said.

This is like giving Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge an award for his humane treatment of the Hmong. I don't know, Maybe Winter saw fit to hand ol' Jihad Jack an award because it was Marines that he threw under the bus? Or was it some quid-pro-quo and some palm-greasing PR gesture, knowing that Murtha holds the purse strings for the stuff the Navy needs?

At any rate, this better be some really twisted joke. I know at least twelve Marines and their families who I'm sure don't find this amusing at all.

If you're as disgusted with this as I am, please sign this petition.

**UPDATE***

As of this writing, there are 17,934 signatories asking this honor be revoked.

Murtha: "See This? This is the Constitution!:

2009-03-18T20:14:00.006-05:00

Murtha: As arrogant as ever!

Yes, Jihad Jack, Murtha--that is the Constitution in your grubby, slimy, greasy, blood-stained hands. That is the Constitution that you so cavalierly discarded when you played judge, jury and executioner to the Marines in Haditha, including Lt. Colonel Chessani, Sgt. Wuterich, and Lance Corporal Justin Sharratt, whose father is a contributor to this blog. That very Constitution that you held in your hand is the one you put in the chipper shredder as you threw these gallant Marines under the bus for your own sorry-assed political gain.

Then you have the chutzpah to pull it out of your pocket and tell reporters, PA-12 voters, and the American people that that same Constitution gives you the right to do as you please like you're some kind of friggin' emperor?

I can't wait til this PMA investigation comes through, Jihad Jack. I can't wait to see you in handcuffs and leg-irons as you're frog-marched into a federal courtroom. I can't wait for the day when you're introduced to your new roommate, Bubba at the Federal Penn. Hope you have plenty of vaseline handy.

Yep, Jihad Jack, that day can't come too soon in my book.

BREAKING NEWS Chessani Rulings Upheld!!!

2009-03-18T02:42:00.001-05:00

Today, the Navy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals issued their ruling that the dismissal charges against Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani won't be re-instated. Here's TMLC's official statement on the NMCCCA ruling:

A Victory for Marine LtCol Chessani
---
ANN ARBOR, MI – Late this morning, the Navy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals sitting in Washington DC, released their unanimous decision upholding the dismissal of charges against Marine Lt. Col Jeffrey Chessani on the grounds of apparent Unlawful Command Influence. But the case may not be over yet.
For the last four years, LtCol Chessani has been investigated and prosecuted for his involvement in the so called “Haditha Massacre”, a massacre that never happened. A 22-year veteran, Chessani has served three tours of duty in Iraq. He served in the First Persian Gulf War and in Panama. At the time of the November 19, 2005 Haditha incident, he was the Battalion Commander of 3rd Battalion, 1st Marines (“The Thundering Third”), one of the most decorated units in the history of the Marine Corps.

Richard Thompson, President and Chief Counsel of the Thomas More Law Center, observed, “LtCol Chessani, one of the most effective combat commanders we had in Iraq, was made political scapegoat by the civilians in the Pentagon to appease the antiwar politicians and a liberal media. In fact, we now know that the story of the ‘massacre’ that prompted the Haditha prosecutions was a headline in a Time news article instigated by insurgent propaganda operatives.”

Continued Thompson, “This nation has come to the point where we can’t call terrorists captured on the battlefield ‘enemy combatants.’ We release the terrorists out of Guantanamo and prosecute the military our country placed in harms’ way to defend us.”

Robert Muise, an attorney with the Law Center, a national public interest law firm, based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, argued the case on behalf of LtCol Chessani. The Law Center has been defending LtCol Chessani throughout his prosecution alongside his detailed Marine lawyers, LtCol John Shelburne and Captain Jeff King. Captain Kyle Kilian, a Marine appellate defense lawyer, also assisted in the appeal.

LtCol Chessani is the highest ranking officer facing criminal charges as a result of the much-publicized and ill-described “Haditha massacre.” The criminal charges against him stem from a legitimate combat action taken by four enlisted Marines in his command after they were ambushed by insurgents in Haditha, Iraq, on November 19, 2005. Their actions resulted in the deaths of several ambushing insurgents.

Unfortunately and tragically, several civilians were also killed in the house-clearing operation.

Even though LtCol Chessani wasn’t present during the incident, he was criminally charged with failing to launch a full investigation into the incident. If convicted, he faces 2 ½ years imprisonment, dismissal from the Corps, and loss of all of his retirement pay.

The essential holding of the military appellate court was as follows: “We are convinced the Government failed to meet its burden of demonstrating, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the proceedings were untainted by the appearance of UCI (Unlawful Command Influence). We are similarly convinced that an objective, disinterested observer, fully informed of all the facts and circumstances, would harbor significant doubt about the fairness of this proceeding.”

Rep. John Murtha's accusations have now been proven to be false. Among Rep. Murtha's accusations was that the Haditha Marines had "killed innocent civilians in cold blood" because they "cracked under the pressure" of war. We now know that they didn't kill innocent civilians in cold blood because charges against these Marines have been dropped.

Another of Rep. Murtha's accusations was that the Marine officers, supposedly including Lt. Col. Chessani, covered the incident up. The NMCCCA upheld the dismissal of charges against Lt. Col. Chessani.

A day after Rep. Murtha made his accusations, he was asked where he got his information from. Here's Rep. Murtha's reply:

“All the information I get, it comes from the commanders, it comes from people who know what they’re talking about.”

Based on the fact that charges were dismissed before court-martial in 6 cases and another man was acquitted, I'd suggest that Rep. Murtha either lied or he talked with people who knew less than what they claimed they knew. Frankly, it's easier to think that Rep. Murtha made this stuff up in his attempt to become the House Majority Whip.

Another red flag incident for me was Murtha's accusation of a cover-up:

GIBSON: Jonathan just mentioned, there’s no charges yet filed against any of the Marines that were in this outfit, but Jonathan mentioned a moment ago, defense lawyers are already saying, well, there’s drone video and there is actual radio traffic to higher-ups that will give a different picture than you have been talking about of this incident. What do you know about that?

MURTHA: I can only tell you this, Charles. This is what the Marine Corps told me at the highest level. The Commandant of the Marine Corps was in my office just last week, so you know, I know there was a cover-up someplace. They knew about this a few days afterwards and there’s no question the chain of command tried to stifle the story. I can understand why, but that doesn’t excuse it. Something like this has to be brought out to the public, and the people have to be punished.

When Rep. Murtha said that he knew that there was a cover-up someplace, I said that he didn't know anything. If you know something, you can explain in detail what you know. A person who suspects something would say that he suspects a cover-up. That clearly didn't happen in this instance.

Should all the appeals for Lt. Col. Chessani turnout the way today's ruling did, that would leave only SSgt. Frank Wuterich with charges still pending. Considering the fact that the military has ruled that a masscre didn't happen and that the military has ruled there wasn't a cover-up, how much of a case is left against SSgt. Wuterich?

Technorati: USMC, John Murtha, Accusations, Haditha, Jeffrey Chessani, Frank Wuterich, Charges Dropped, Acquittal, Thomas More Law Center

Cross-posted at LFR.

Well...We Tried To Tell You...

2009-03-12T20:05:00.009-05:00

We tried to tell you, again and again, that John P. Murtha was not to be trusted.

We tried to tell you, again and again on this blog, that the only thing John P. Murtha is interested in, is, well, enriching John P. Murtha, whether it's throwing the Haditha Marines under the bus for reasons of political gain, or rewarding his cronies with pay-to-play earmarks designed as quid-pro-quos to keep his political machine and campaign war machine well-oiled and chock full of booty.

Hell, even when the megalomaniacal John Murtha scores an earmark for a local cancer center, it has his name plastered all over it like he's some modern day Julius Caesar.

Yes, we at Murtha Must Go!! have known this since May of 2006, when we first started peeling the rotten onion that is Congressman John P. "Jihad Jack" Murtha.

We even warned you literally years ahead of the curve that John Murtha was utilizing his political connections and earmarks to set up phony fronts to line his greasy pockets. As a matter of fact, this story, regarding Murtha's connection to Electro-Optics Center, now just coming to light in the mainstream press, was reported by me on MMG back on September 27, 2006, over two and a half years ago.

We at MMG tried to warn the voters of PA-12 that they were sending and re-sending a crook of the lowest order back to Washington, time and time again. But I guess it's hard to see straight when you have more pork dangling in front of your eyes than a Hormel Spam factory.

So, to our friends in the mainstream media (and even the Kos-Kids) who have finally taken the time to delve into what a scumbag Murtha is, welcome to the club.

Just one question, though: What the hell took you so long?

Murtha & PMA--the King of Pork is the also the King of kickbacks...

2009-03-02T21:21:00.003-06:00

According to Open Secrets:

The chairman of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.), who has helped insert more than $100 million in defense-related earmarks into appropriations bills for 2008, according to government watchdog group Taxpayers for Common Sense, collected the most from PMA and its clients among all subcommittee members--$2.4 million. Rep. Pete Visclosky (D-Ind.) is next, having brought in $1.4 million. The PMA clients that have given the most since 1998 to the subcommittee's current members are three well-known defense companies: Lockheed Martin ($862,700), General Dynamics ($693,400) and Boeing ($578,600). (This research commences in 1998 because that's how far back CRP's lobbying data goes.)

The following two tables include: 1) A list of current members on the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee who have received money from lobbying firm PMA Group and the employees and PACs of its clients since 1998 and 2) A list of the PMA Group clients that have contributed through their employees and PACs to current members of the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee since 1998.

Members of the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee who have received contributions from PMA Group and the firm's clients:

Name

Total

John P. Murtha (D-Pa)

$2,378,552

Pete Visclosky (D-Ind)

$1,369,298

Jim Moran (D-Va)

$997,348

Norm Dicks (D-Wash)

$536,330

C. W. Bill Young (R-Fla)

$460,750

Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-NJ)

$359,041

Todd Tiahrt (R-Kan)

$351,565

Kay Granger (R-Texas)

$347,450

Hal Rogers (R-Ky)

$249,499

Jack Kingston (R-Ga)

$199,750

Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio)

$144,300

Allen Boyd (D-Fla)

$143,000

Sanford D. Bishop Jr. (D-Ga)

$93,500

Maurice Hinchey (D-NY)

$80,000

Steven R. Rothman (D-NJ)

$74,000

Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick (D-Mich)

$13,500

I suppose if you're going to be doing something, it always pays to do your best. Especially when your best talent involves lining your pockets at taxpayer expense.

Way to go, Jack Murtha--whether it's pork, or graft, or corruption, you're still the king!

A Response to the Pennsylvania GOP...

2009-02-24T18:16:00.004-06:00

Although I don't live in Pennsylvania, I somehow got on the PA-GOP email list, and was sent a fundraising letter for a supposedly up and coming PA GOP star who wants money.

Well and good, but the PA-GOP has an absolute treasure trove from which to rally around the troops if it so chose, but instead, it chooses to sit on it.

Below was my ~~rant~~ response:

Dear PA-"GOP."

Right now you have a United States Congressman; a Democrat, at that, who is embroiled in the middle in a huge scandal with a pay-for-play, quid-pro-quo lobbying firm that is finally closing its doors because they know that the gig is up.

Perhaps you've heard of this congressman. Yeah, from PA-12... ever hear of him?!?

You know.. John "Jihad Jack" Murtha.

Oh, you have? Perhaps in passing?

Well, PA-"GOP" leaders-- I have a question for you regarding Jack "Jabba The Hut" Murtha, who just happens to reside in your own backyard. And that question is:

What is your MAJOR MALFUNCTION, PA-GOP?!?!

Why aren't you shouting from the rooftops from one end of the gerrymandered confines of PA-12 to the other the incontrovertible FACT that JACK MURTHA IS
A LYING, TRAITOROUS CROOK?!?!

Or are you, too, as deep in his slime-filled pocket as are a lot of defense contractors, lobbying firms, front-end laundering operations and dirty congressmen?

Why did you NOT LIFT A FINGER to help when William Russell ran against Murtha??!?

Why did your local... ah-hem... Johnstown-area "REPUBLICAN" leadership try to get Russell, an honored military veteran, thrown off the ticket???

As you may or may not know, I and a number of very talented, passionate folks have run a blog called "Murtha Must Go!!" and we have since 19 May, 2006 chronicled Murtha's misdeeds, from Abscam to Haditha and beyond.

Congressman John P. Murtha made it personal for me when he went and unjustly pronounced guilt against the Marines in the Haditha incident. On national TV. He did this when my own son was in theatre and in harm's way.

As you can imagine, this didn't sit too well for me.

So, from a livingroom in friggen St. CLOUD, Minnesota, I and my compadres (living in places like North Dakota, Texas, Chicago, and yes, one or two in Pennsylvania) have done more to expose this creep in the past two and three-quarter years than you and your ENTIRE STATE PARTY have done for the past 34 years that the gasbag has been in office!!

Murtha deserves to be spending the remainder of his days in an 8 x 10 cell in Leavenworth, not roaming the hallowed halls of congress!

What's it going to take to get the local and state PA-"GOP" leadership to finally get off of their, as Murtha would say, "Big fat backsides" and get this clown out of office, once and for all, if not behind bars??!?

As I've stated before, I (and I'm sure I can speak for my co-contributors) are more than willing to do the heavy lifting that's requried to expose this creep.

But it's high time you as a state party start putting cronyism aside and concentrate on principles, for a change. You call yourself "Republicans"--well then start acting like REPUBLICANS, already, instead of a group of obsequious toadies that kowtow to corruption!

Exasperated and Flummoxed,

Leo J. Pusateri, Jr., founder and editor

Murtha Must Go!!

Awwkwaaaaarrrd!

2009-02-22T22:11:00.008-06:00

So, Jihad Jack was at a Boy Scout dinner the other day. What do you think the major topic of discussion was that evening? Was it the Eagle Merit Badge? Was it how to tie a slip knot? Well, not exactly. But if there was a merit badge to be given for sleazy political corruption, they got a good firsthand education from the "master":

Guests Talk About PMA Investigation At Boy Scouts
Dinner
Thursday, February 19, 2009 –
updated: 10:41 pm EST February 19, 2009
CAMBRIA COUNTY, Pa. -- Rep. John Murtha was in Johnstown Thursday night for an annual dinner event for the Boy Scouts. WJAC asked some of the big name guests what they think of the investigation of the lobbying group PMA and its ties to the congressman.

The Penn's Woods Boy Scout Group wrapped up their latest fundraiser with the annual Harry E. Mangle memorial dinner at the Pasquerilla Conference Center. CEO of Concurrent Technologies Corporation, Ed Sheehan, was honored for his service to the community. The keynote speaker for the night was Chris Matthews, the host of "Hardball" on MSNBC.Matthews showed off some of his merit badges from his time in the Scouts.

The mood was lighthearted, but the topic looming over the evening was Murtha and his ties to the lobbying group PMA. It, along with Kuchera companies in Windber, were raided by the FBI in recent weeks."I've read what you have read," said Matthews. "I have to tell you the guy (Murtha) has been fabulous in the Congress."

WJAC also talked with the honoree, Ed Sheehan, about the latest news that PMA is closing."We've been working with PMA since the beginning and they've provided a great service for us," said Sheehan.

"We'll have to look elsewhere for lobbying companies but it will have no impact on our business."

Of course PMA's closing [I didn't know that was happening... hmmm..] would have no impact on Concurrent Technologies' business; they do a pretty good business with Jihad Jack all by their lonesome.

That aside, you think ol' Jihad Jack was adjusting his tie and his collar, sweating bullets, losing his appetite and feeling just a tad uncomfortable while all that talk was going on?

There was a veritable Who's Who of greasy political pork present at that reverie.

If I was a parent of a scout at the gathering, I'd no doubt have my son take a shower when he got home.

Murtha & PMA: The Political Equivalent of "Greasy Grimy Gopher Guts?"

2009-02-19T21:22:00.008-06:00

It just gets dirtier and dirtier...til you wouldn't want to touch it with a ten foot pole attached to a pair of salad tongs.

PMA’s founder, Paul Magliocchetti, is a former House Appropriations Committee aide who has a long-running relationship with Murtha, D-Pa., the chairman of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee.

Murtha, who used to boast that his middle initial stands for “power,” carved out $38.1 million for PMA clients in the fiscal 2008 defense spending law, according to Taxpayers for Common Sense.

Indiana Rep. Peter J. Visclosky , who serves on Murtha’s subcommittee and additionally is chairman of the subcommittee that allocates money for the Pentagon’s nuclear programs, earmarked $23.8 million for PMA clients in the fiscal 2008 defense spending bill.

And the fun doesn't end there (emphases added).

No Overhead?

Curiously, in the last four election cycles, PMA’s political action committee reported expenses of only $18, according to federal campaign finance reports compiled by CQ MoneyLine.

It reported no payroll costs.

The $18 was for re-ordering checks and another bank fee.

Now that PMA has been the focus of news reports, several lawmakers have said they’ll give away some of their campaign money.

“My campaign has informed me that the PMA Group has made contributions to my re-election committee in past years. I have directed that all contributions ever received from the PMA Group be returned to them,” said Rep. Zoe Lofgren , D-Calif., chairwoman of the House ethics committee. “I do so without making any comment to the veracity of the allegations against PMA Group.”

[snip]

The inventory of PMA’s contributions and earmark benefactors includes a number of House members who have clout by association, because they are Murtha’s friends or his proteges in the Pennsylvania delegation — a group that congregates along the southeast edge of the House chamber in what’s been known for years as Murtha’s corner.

Among the top 20 recipients of PMA campaign dollars since 2001 are Pennsylvania Democrats Mike Doyle ($69,400), Tim Holden ($57,275), Paul Kanjorski ($37,150) and Chris Carney ($38,500) — even though Carney was first elected in 2006.

In the PMA donation top 30 are Pennsylvania Reps. Patrick J. Murphy ($29,250), Allyson Y. Schwartz ($25,000) and Jason Altmire ($24,500). Schwartz was first elected in 2004, and Altmire and Murphy first won their seats in 2006.

Those Pennsylvanians combined for $17.3 million in PMA earmarks in the single fiscal 2008 bill shepherded by Murtha.

Rep. Michael E. Capuano , who is often only partially visible in the House chamber because he stands behind Murtha’s back row with his arms over the railing, has taken $54,000 in campaign contributions from PMA sources in the last eight years.

In the fiscal 2008 bill, he requested a successful $2 million earmark for Parametric Technology Corporation, a PMA-represented information systems company with offices near Capuano’s Boston-based district and in Murtha’s district in western Pennsylvania.

Capuano also secured $800,000 in that bill for another one of the lobbying firm’s clients.

But Murtha's greasy tentacles go way beyond PMA itself. A reliable source emails

If anyone really wants to follow the money they should look at Murtha's creation in Armstrong County. The Electro-Optics Center. I understand that Murtha has funneled over $250 Million of earmarks through that place. It goes back out to PMA clients. while a little stays there. It is basically a front organization for PMA and Murtha to hide earmarks to defense buddies.

Supposedly this is where most of the money goes and then kicked back to Murtha:

Tuesday 3 March 2009

Fort Belvoir Officers’ Club

5500 Schulz Circle

Fort Belvoir, VA 22060-6102

Celebrating the 10th Anniversary of the Electro-Optics Center

We are proud to announce Congressman John Murtha as the Keynote Speaker along with other prominent guest speakers.

Please RSVP for the meeting by using the following link

http://www.electro-optics.org/psu/webform10.aspx

There is a $30 fee for this meeting

For questions, please contact Kathy Kovalcik

e-mail: eoa@eoc.psu.edu phone: 724-295-7016

Continental Breakfast @ 7am. Meeting starts at 7:45 am

More information and final agenda to follow in the near future.

Accommodations are available, with a block of rooms being held under "Group
Code PSU"

Courtyard by Marriott

14300 Crossing Place

Woodbridge,VA 22192

703-491-4525

Rooms are on a first come, first serve basis and cost is the responsibility of the attendee. Please note Block rate is available until 12 February 2009

We value our ongoing partnerships and look forward to future collaborations.

Hey PA-12--feel like taking a shower, yet?

A sad anniversary...

2009-02-05T22:00:00.001-06:00

John Murtha: 35 years of pork-laden, self-serving, troop-smearing corruption.

Happy anniversary.

Hey PA-12...

2009-02-03T17:21:00.005-06:00

Why couldn't you have elected a guy like this?

Under no circumstances does state Rep. Dan Moul want Pennsylvania considered as a potential site for the relocation of suspected terrorists now being housed at the Guantanamo Bay prison camp.
And in a defiant move against President Barack Obama's plan to close the Cuba-based prison and relocate the facility somewhere within the U.S., the Adams County representative has drafted a resolution he hopes will stop Pennsylvania from being on the short list of potential sites.
"These people are trained killers, and they're trained to kill Americans. That's what they were born, bred and raised to do is to kill us, infidels," Moul said. "And as soon as they land here, the United States taxpayers, you and I, would wind up paying for legal services for these people who would like to do nothing more than to kill us."
With that rationale, Moul, R-Conewago Township, is looking for co-sponsorships on the resolution that, if passed, would urge Congress not to transfer any Guantanamo Bay detainees to the commonwealth of Pennsylvania. He intends to propose it to the state House of Representatives in a few weeks.
The resolution states Moul's opposition to taxpayers funding housing and legal services for suspected terrorists and to detainees being afforded civil rights.
It also recommends that detainees instead be transferred to maximum-security facilities within their country of citizenship or in the country where they were originally captured.
"If we bring them here, it's going to cost the taxpayers millions and millions of dollars over the years," Moul said. "There would be plenty of attorneys lined up at the prison gates to represent them and charge the United States taxpayers tons of money to give them representation, which I feel they do not deserve. I don't want to spend one more nickel on them than I absolutely positively have to."

Nothing at all like the terrorist-loving, "Blame the troops first!" Jihad Jack Murtha.

So tell me, PA-12... how's that pork workin' out for ya?

BTW--there's still a chance in 2010.

Yet Even MORE Corruption?

2009-01-29T17:53:00.009-06:00

We alerted you here and here regarding Murtha's dealings with the Kuchera Industries, a local PA-12 beneficiary of Murtha's largesse, as well as a heavyweight donor to Murtha's campaign coffers.

Well, get ready for yet another corrupt company with Jihad Jack Murtha's greasy-grimy fingerprints all over it (emphases mine):

Possible Shakeup At Firm Tied
To John Murtha
Washington-Based PMA Group Has Close, Controversial Ties To Congressman
Scott MacFarlane
Thursday, January 29, 2009 – updated: 4:47 pm EST January 29, 2009
WASHINGTON -- WJACTV.com has learned a Washington lobbying powerhouse with close connections to Johnstown Rep. John Murtha is undergoing a shakeup.Its founder, a longtime Murtha aide whose business dealings with the Congressman have attracted scrutiny, could be on his way out.

The PMA Group, founded by former Murtha staffer Paul Magliocchetti, might soon part ways with Magliocchetti. Patrick Dorton, a PMA Group spokesman, told WJACTV.com, "There are ongoing discussions inside the firm about its future business structure."Multiple sources told WJACTV.com PMA and Magliocchetti could soon part ways.Several government watchdog groups have criticized the connection between PMA Group's campaign donations and lucrative earmarks secured by Murtha. According to Citizens for Ethics and Responsibility in Washington, PMA Group and its clients contributed $381,000 to Murtha's campaign and political action committee between 2005 and 2008. During the same period of time, reports show PMA secured at least $95 million in federal earmark money.

It would appear that Kuchera and PMA may be merely the tip of the iceberg:

A Jan. 24 edition of Politico newspaper reports, "According to two sources, in recent months FBI agents have begun looking into Murtha's earmarks and his relationship with lobbying firms and contractors that get those earmarks."

A spokeswoman for the United States Attorney's office for Western Pennsylvania confirms federal agents raided the Kuchera properties last week. But she would neither confirm nor deny whether Murtha and the PMA Group are also under investigation.

And of course, as with anytime Jihad Jack Murtha is asked to be held accountable for anything, the response is the same:

Murtha's office did not respond to requests for comment.

How much longer, PA-12??? How much longer?

***UPDATE****

It appears that PMA Group has its own PAC, with employees, big-wigs and possibly spouses as main contributors.

Be Still My Heart!!!

2009-01-28T18:42:00.003-06:00

While browsing the net today, I came upon this headline:

Murtha to Step Down

"Gads!" I thought, "could it really be? Could it be that the most corrupt politician to come down the pike since Huey Long has finally had his comeuppance?" So I clicks on the headline, and finds this:

BRATTLEBORO -- After nearly 14 years serving on bench, U.S. District Court Judge J. Garvan Murtha will move to senior status this July.
Murtha, approaching 68, said Tuesday that he has fulfilled all the requirements in the full-time position and decided to step down in order to give someone else the opportunity to be a federal judge.

Curses. I certainly look forward to that day when such a headline will be attributed to the target of this blog.

Murtha and Kuchera Industries: Follow the Money

2009-01-23T20:19:00.005-06:00

As I posted yesterday, the FBI raided a Pennsylvania defense contractor with strong ties to our very own Jihad Jack Murtha. What I didn't know was just how entwined our porcine earmark king was with the bigwigs at Kuchera Defense Systems:

Over the last several years, Murtha, a Democrat from Pennsylvania, has helped steer more than $100 million in contracts to Kuchera, a government contractor founded in 1985 by Bill Kuchera. The company and its employees have donated more than $65,000 dollars to Murtha’s re-election campaign and leadership PAC, according to Federal Election Commission records.

How many more times are the folks in PA-12 going to send this slime-laden, corrupt bloated dinosaur of a politician back to what should be a position of trust in Washington? How many times must he be caught with his fat, greasy fingers in the cookie jar before PA-12 voters finally get sufficiently disgusted to say, ENOUGH IS ENOUGH?!?"

Boss Murtha: Yet More Corruption?

2009-01-22T20:12:00.004-06:00

Why does Corruption follow Jihad Jack Murtha like flies follow garbage?

Agents Raid Defense Firm with
Murtha Ties

By Paul Singer

January 22, 2009, 5:58 p.m.

Media outlets in Pennsylvania are reporting that federal agents have raided the offices of a defense contractor with close ties to Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.).

The Johnstown Tribune-Democrat reported Thursday afternoon that Federal Bureau of Investigation and Internal Revenue Service agents raided the offices of Kuchera Defense Systems and Kuchera Industries in Windber, Pa.

Murtha has provided millions of dollars worth of earmarks for the company, and company employees have provided tens of thousands of dollars for his campaign.

Surprise? I think not.

It's no accident that Murtha made the top of CREW's list for most corrupt congressman.

As a matter of fact, when it comes to corruption, it seems that nobody tops him.

If there was a superhero of corrupt congressman, there is no doubt in my mind that Jihad Jack Murtha would be its model.

John Murtha Sides with Terrorists. AGAIN.

2009-01-21T20:16:00.005-06:00

About closing Club Gitmo, allowing terrorists to be housed within the borders of the U.S., and eliminating military tribunals for terrorists? Hell--The ever-tone-deaf Jihad Jack Murtha's all over that, even to the point of housing your friendly terrorist right in PA-12's own neighborhood, just a stone's throw away from Shanksville.

Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa., said he would take the detainees in his own district, which lies just a few miles from the field near Shanksville, Pa., where United Flight 93 crashed after it was hijacked by terrorists on Sept. 11, killing all 44 people aboard.

"Sure, I'd take them. They're no more dangerous in my district than in Guantanamo," Murtha said, calling the Guantanamo prison a "sore in the United States' moral standards."

"There's no reason not to put them in prisons in the United States and handle them the way they would handle any other prisoners."

9/11 survivor families are outraged, as they (and every other American) should be:

"To me it's beyond comprehension that they would take the side of the terrorists," said Peter Gadiel, whose son, James, was killed at the World Trade Center on 9/11. "Many of these people have been released and been right back killing, right back at their terrorist work again."

So tell me, PA-12; is the pork that Jihad Jack Murtha brings home really worth it?

Murtha won't let military directly lobby for their needs

2009-01-08T20:37:00.008-06:00

It has long been known that Jack Murtha has been living high off the hog with regard to earmarks that have been given to his military contracting buddies. As a matter of fact, he's making such good money from his beneficiaries that he wants to streamline the earmark process: He plans to bypass advice by members of the military altogether:

The House’s top defense appropriator has pledged to help strengthen the role of the Pentagon’s comptroller in an effort to curb lobbying by the military services for their controversial programs.

Why should he listen to the military, as the military itself doesn't provide Jack with campaign contributions.

As I've stated before, Jack Murtha does nothing without there being something in it for Jack Murtha. To Jack Murtha, the military is merely a tool he uses to keep his fat backside in power, or to advance his political career, a/la his slanderous declaration of guilt toward the Haditha Marines.

I don't know; perhaps I'm a bit too cynical. I'm absolutely positive that there is no lobbying going on when Concurrent Technologies receives a taxpayer-funded porkbarrel contract to the tune of $200 million dollars... or is there?

Yet, the Murtha situation is very troubling when you look at CTC’s Form 990. With the exception of three individuals listed on the schedule of officers and directors, all have contributed to Murtha’s congressional campaigns since 2002.

[SNIP]
The Times also notes that CTC has paid somewhere around $500,000 to a lobbying firm. The lobbying firm's executives and clients have contributed over $1.2 million to Murtha in campaign contributions (the Times refers to these as donations) since 1999, according to the Times.

So we have a congressman who was a driving force behind the creation of this tax-exempt entity. That same congressman is earmarking significant amounts of money to that organization. Those who are in control of the organization (several of whom receive significant salaries from CTC) contribute large amounts of money to the congressman’s campaign. We can only wonder how the entity distributes the federal grant money within the local community.

I mean, with sweetheart deals like that, why should Murtha even bother to take the time listen to those pesky military folks who actually know what they need?

I mean, there's gold in them there earmarks, right, Jihad Jack?

More proof that Murtha is SENILE.

2008-12-27T17:36:00.006-06:00

...and that he has no clue of which he speaks.

(CNSNews.com) - Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.) said Wednesday that he opposes the all-volunteer army and that a military draft, based on a lottery with no deferments, is necessary during wartime.

Murtha painted a bleak picture of the U.S. military during his address, saying the armed forces are stretched too thin and that the number of new soldiers recruited without having a high school diploma had increased.

[SNIP]“Well, we’ll never be able to fight a conventional war where you have two fronts without a draft. You can’t do it – 70 percent of the people in World War II were drafted and 40 percent in Vietnam. The draftees did fine,” he said.

Newsflash to Murtha: We are fighting multiple fronts in this war, and we have plenty of volunteers to fight it.

Another newsflash to clueless Jack Murtha: Our volunteer soldiers don't want inductees. Period. My son can attest to the fact that they'd rather serve any day with other volunteers than serve with others who are forced to be there.

One more newsflash to clueless Jack Murtha: The Vietnam draftees didn't do fine.

Remember, this is the great military mind who thought it would be a good idea to redeploy our troops from Iraq to Okinawa. The same military genius who thought it a good idea to cut and run from Lebanon, which in part gave Osama bin Laden the inspiration to perpetrate 9/11.

Yeah. A real man of genius, that Murtha is.

(click for full size)

That is all.

Jihad Jack Murtha Stands By His Lies.

2008-12-11T20:34:00.008-06:00

If there was ever a more brazenly self-serving, arrogant man alive than John "Jihad Jack" Murtha, I've yet to find him:

CNSNews.com: “Recently, all the charges were dropped with the soldiers involved in the Haditha event. You had been on TV with CNN and different outlets and you were saying that they were, quote, the civilians were killed in cold blood, end quote. But now that the charges have been dropped, do you think that was the right thing to say?”

Rep. John Murtha: “Yes, I think it was, that’s my job. My job is due. Listen, the NCIS (National Criminal Investigation Service) came to exactly the same conclusion I did. They had a two-star general investigate it. General Hagee went over right after I spoke out and talked to all of the Marines in the field and said you got to stop this kind of killing.”

What the hell does "That's my job. My job is due" mean? Is it your job, Jihad Jack, to usurp the Constitutional protections of soldiers who lay their lives on the line to defend that very Constitution? Is it "your job" to pronounce guilt before any investigation has taken place?

You say that General Hagee went right over right after you "spoke out" [read: LIED] and talked to all of the Marines in the field, telling them "you got to stop this kind of killing." Where is your proof of that? Why should we take you at your word when you have proven time and time again that you will lie to protect your sorry-assed, corrupt, political career? Did you even bother to look at the facts, Jihad Jack? Hell--you didn't even wait for an official briefing before you opened your big fat piehole on that fateful day in May of 2006, when you couldn't wait to run in front of the nearest camera to spill your bile--all just so you could pad your resume to advance your big, fat, self-serving backside to a coveted House Majority Leader post.

Jihad Jack Murtha: We here at Murtha Must Go!! continue to stand with our demand that you apologize and forthwith resign your seat in the House of Representatives. If you can't back up your story, if you can't back up your lies with facts, then you not only need to resign your post, but you need to be tried for slander.

We here at Murtha Must Go!! know of course that you will not do the honorable thing, because YOU HAVE NO HONOR!

Nonetheless, Congressman John Murtha, we here at Murtha Must Go!! will not rest until justice has been served!

We ask all like-minded readers to fill out the "Vets For Freedom" petition on the sidebar of this blog to call on Jack Murtha to apologize for his abject slanderous remarks and his blatant disregard for the principles inherent in the United States Constitution which his oath of office demands that he uphold.

Murtha: Not a leg to stand on.

2008-11-23T18:33:00.004-06:00

As has been chronicled on this blog time and time again, Congressman John Murtha threw his lot with the anti-war kook left as he threw Haditha Marine's Constitutional right to presumption of innocence out the window for reasons of cheap, political gain. Congressman Murtha mis-used the influence of his office in a manner, as John Kerry would say, reminiscent of Genghis Khahn as he ran roughshod over the Constitutional rights of those who so valiantly put their lives on the line to defend it.

Now that Murtha's chickenzzzz have come home to roost, Boss Murtha is claiming immunity, saying that he can't be sued because, according to him, he was actually doing his job when he was denying the Haditha Marines their right to due process and presumption of innocence.

Which led Judge Karen LeCraft Henderson to question:

“Who is his master?” Henderson asked. “Do you ever serve the interests of your constituents by making a derogatory comment to the media?”

Of course, the short answer to that is that Boss Murtha has never been about serving his constituents, but rather about weaving a web of quid pro quos designed for the sole purpose of keeping his big phat backside in PA-12's seat in Washington.

Make no mistake. Jack Murtha never does something without there being a whole lot of something there for-- Jack Murtha.

Jack Murtha is used to getting his way, by hook, or, by crook. But this time, Jack Murtha has spun himself a web from which there should be no escape. Christina Jeffrey, the historian for the 104th congress, asserts:

While Murtha wants us to believe talking to reporters is an activity covered by the Constitution's speech and debate clause, the Supreme Court doesn't agree.
In the 1979 decision Hutchinson v. Proxmire (443 U.S. 111), the court ruled against Sen. William Proxmire because this clause does not protect him when he is off the floor and transmitting information to the media in the form of a press release. Why should a verbal "press release" be any different?
The Herald-Journal makes the case, popular inside the Beltway, that members of Congress need immunity from lawsuits when conducting the people's business. (They also want to be free of lawsuits if they are in traffic accidents). Since they consider themselves to be conducting the people's business 24/7, we're creating a very privileged class - one that can run us over and defame us at will. However, if necessity were a legitimate defense, it's certainly undermined by changes in communication that have made it easy to amplify a million times every word a congressmen speaks on the floor of Congress. No, we don't need to relieve congressmen of the nicety of going down to the well to have their say. Constitutional forms remain important.

As Thomas Jefferson stated, "When governments fear the people, there is liberty. When the people fear the government, there is tyranny."

Jeffrey expands:

The clear language of the Constitution with respect to the responsibility of legislators to live under the law has been articulated since Montesquieu and is enshrined in the English common law on which the Constitution is based.

President Madison, writing in the Federalist, warns us that if ever our legislators are exempt from law, freedom will be lost. The 104th Congress actually passed a congressional rule that Congress would henceforth abide by the law. Murtha should be punished for failing to do so.

There can be no argument made against the fact that a grave, purposeful injustice was perpetrated against citizens by a duly elected Constitutional officer by the name of John Murtha.

Murtha, again, is not a king, but is rather elected to serve the people and at the pleasure of the people; and, even according to his own governing body's rules, must not only be held accountable for acting in the best interests of those he serves, but to live under the same laws, as well.

The Wheels of Justice are Turning...

2008-11-19T20:05:00.007-06:00

On the road toward justice for the Haditha Marines:

A Marine who is suing Rep. John Murtha for defamation wants a federal appeals court to order the powerful Pennsylvania Democrat to testify under oath about comments he made related to the deaths of unarmed Iraqi civilians in the town of Haditha in 2005.
An attorney for Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich on Tuesday asked the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia to compel Murtha to give a deposition in the case. Attorney Mark Zaid said he needs information about how often and in what context Murtha claimed that Marines in Iraq engaged in “cold-blooded murder and war crimes” in killing the Iraqi civilians.

A government lawyer representing Murtha argued that the congressman does not have to agree to testify under oath and is immune from the lawsuit because he was acting in an official capacity as a member of Congress when he made the comments to the media.
Last year a federal judge ordered Murtha, a decorated former Marine and Vietnam veteran and close ally of Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), to testify in the case. His lawyers are appealing that decision.

Does 'congressional immunity' allow the right for an elected Constitutional officer of the United States, sworn to uphold and defend the Constitution, to in effect deny those very rights to due process and presumption of innocence to the constituents that they serve?

Perhaps a judge involved in the case stated it best:

Judge Karen LeCraft Henderson questioned whether Murtha’s comments were made within the scope of his employment, and if his constituents are considered his employer, what kind of service he was providing them by making the Haditha comments.
“Who is his master?” Henderson asked. “Do you ever serve the interests of your constituents by making a derogatory comment to the media?”

Amen, Judge Henderson.

To hold Murtha unaccountable for what can only be construed as outright slander and lies that wrought immeasurable damage against the Haditha Marines (not to mention toward the security of all our soldiers in harm's way), would be a travesty of justice of monumental proportions.

Much to his amazement, Murtha is a public servant, not a king.

Get Ready for Round 2, Jack...

2008-11-12T20:02:00.004-06:00

Cause Lt. Col. William Russell isn't taking defeat sitting down:

HARRISBURG -- Just eight days after Election Day, Bill Russell says he's ready for round two against U.S. Rep. John Murtha (D-Johnstown).

The Republican congressional candidate, who received a late avalanche of attention of attention in his race against the 34-year incumbent before ultimately falling by 16 points, told PolitickerPA.com Tuesday that he plans to run again in 2010.

"I'm running for the same seat again," he said, although he added he hasn't officially declared.

And we'll be leaving the light on here at MMG, as well. In Murtha's past 17 elections, he barely needed to lift a finger. All he had to do was spread the pork around and everyone was fat and happy. But all that changed in the 2008 election season. Remember, it was Russell who was running only slightly behind in some polls, and even ahead in others; this despite his not being able to campaign until honorably discharged from the Army on August 1. For the first time in his political career, the scumbag from PA-12 was scared for his seat; so scared that he had to call in chits from the beneficiaries of his largesse, as well as big guns such as Bill & Hillary Clinton to help him out.

The little Nero from PA-12, though not totally defeated, was knocked off his pedestal; and for the first time in his sorry political existence, had a taste of mortality. I anticipate that in two years, Lt. Col. Russell will return in grand fashion to finish the job.

CHUTZPAH!

2008-11-11T21:40:00.015-06:00

chutz⋅pah

–noun Slang.

1.	unmitigated effrontery or impudence; gall.

2.	audacity; nerve.

Also, chutzpah, hutzpa, hutzpah.

With all the work that John Murtha has done to undermine our troops' mission in Iraq, with the apologizing he has yet to do by playing judge, jury and executioner to the Haditha Marines, Jihad Jack Murtha has a helluva lot of nerve!

JOHN MURTHA | Honoring our veterans takes more than words
BY JOHN MURTHA
The Tribune-Democrat
Veterans Day is a time to honor those Americans who answered the call to service and who proudly fought to defend our freedoms.

America owes an immeasurable debt to each of the 23.4 million veterans alive today, including the tens-of-thousands living right here in southwestern Pennsylvania.

Honoring our veterans means more than just words and speeches.

You're damn tootin' it takes more than words and speeches, Jihad Jack!

For starters why don't you yet apologize to the Marines you slandered by labelling them cold blooded murderers, without so much as an official briefing.

While you're at it, Jack--if you want to repay your debt to our gallant men and women in uniform, why not apologize to the people whose enemy you emboldened with every lie and with every word of discouragement that came from your piehole, all in the name of endearing you to the moonbat left and furthering your pathetic political career.

But ultimately, Jihad Jack Murtha--if you really want to honor our gallant men and women who put their lives on the line every day to protect your sorry ass, let me suggest you do the following:

RESIGN YOUR SEAT.

Open Letter to PA GOP

2008-11-05T15:46:00.001-06:00

(ed note--I couldn't get this through because of overzealous (by design, perhaps?) spam filters, but if any of our readers can pass this on, I'd appreciate it--thanks)

To the leadership of PA-GOP...

I guess I don't understand it.

You have had a chance to knock off the most corrupt, democrat congressman, possibly in the history of the United States, who sits ensconsed in your own backyard much like Jabba the Hut, and you keep on shooting yourselves in your collective kneecap. Jack Murtha slanders and unlawfully convicts those who put their lives on the line to defend us and our way of life, and you don't so much as lift a finger to depose his ass. Alternately, you actually enable his re-election.

You didn't lift a finger when Diana Irey ran against the gasbag in '06.

You were active in trying to keep Lt. Col.William Trower Russell, an honorable veteran, off the ballot; he had to get in on a write-in campaign after the local GOP had him tossed off!!

You chose not to take an active part in deposing a democrat politician who has lived high on the taxpayer hog for thirty-four (soon to be 36) friggen years!!

And then you have the gall to still want money from your constituents???

Since May 19 of 2006, after Murtha played judge, jury and executioner to the Haditha Marines, I (and some talented, like-minded friends) have maintained the blog, Murtha Must Go!!

Isn't it kind of pathetic that people from around our nation, myself being from Minnesota, others from Chicago, etc., who clearly recognize what a scourge Congressman Murtha is on the national political scene, care more and do more to expose Murtha than does the Pennsylvania GOP???

Are you that comfortable wallowing in Murtha's abject debauchery that you, too, are willing to look the other way?

Are you, as are many a corn-fed dependent PA-12 constituent, blinded by the pork?

Must the remainder of the people in this nation, disgusted by Murtha's traitorous behavior that has literally taken its toll in lost lives, continue to do the heavy lifting that the PA GOP continues to refuse to do?

Don't get me wrong. I'm still going to go after Murtha. I'm still going to expose the corruption, and I won't rest until he either gets unseated or takes a well-deserved frog march and perp-walk in front of a thousand cameras.

But it would be nice to get a little help once in a while.

Sincerely,

Leo J. Pusateri, Jr.

Founder and Editor of Murtha Must Go!!

We're Not Going Away Jack...

2008-11-04T22:31:00.005-06:00

Pork Over Principle won again.

But you know, Jack, the principle of the thing remains that you have yet to answer for your abuse of power. You have yet to answer for your crime of slander against the Haditha Marines, and against Justin Sharratt, in particular.

We here at Murtha Must Go will not rest until you are 1. Unseated from your seat, or 2. made to do a well-deserved perp walk.

Rest assured, Congressman John Murtha, that we here at Murtha Must Go!! will continue to be watching you, and chronicling your mis-steps and mis-deeds.

So, don't get too comfortable and arrogant, Jack Murtha.

Just remember, Pride goeth before the fall.

That is all.

BILL, MAKE THEM STOP!!!!

2008-11-04T19:57:00.002-06:00

Poor Jihad Jack...

Nobody likes him anymore, so he sent for Slick Willy Clinton to shame his constituents into voting for him...

What a sourpuss:

Murtha's Swan Song?

2008-11-01T21:59:00.006-05:00

To quote an old song...

~When you're blue and oh so lonely, when the world has turned on you...

PITTSBURGH -- After a campaign rally, incumbent Pennsylvania Rep. John Murtha walked out on an interview with Channel 11 when he was pressed to answer questions regarding controversial comments he previously made to the press.

Earlier this month, Murtha publicly said that Western Pennsylvania is a “racist area” and this will be a problem for Obama’s campaign in the state.

When pressed about his controversial comments, Murtha said, “Now you see what you’re doing? You’re getting away from the real issues of this campaign. You are getting away from the economy and health care. You are getting away from education.”

Poor Jack... nobody likes you anymore. Not the media, Not the military, not the far-left whackos who used to wine you and dine you to get you to betray our nation; hell.. not even your constituents like you anymore.

Once you were the toast of the town, and now you're scurrying about miserably, with your hand out, singing, "Brother Can You Spare a Dime," trying desperately to hang on the seat you once held comfortably for the past 34 years.

I'm so sorry... here... let me help you by getting out the world's smallest violin, while I play, "My Heart Bleeds for You".....

NOT.

Murtha on Iraq: WRONG!

2008-11-01T21:31:00.003-05:00

Despite nearly three years that Jihad Jack Murtha has waged his own personal war against American troops and their mission in Iraq, this past month in Iraq shows beyond a doubt that the determination of our fighting men and women, their leaders, and yes, President Bush has resulted in a victory:

October’s U.S. death toll in Iraq matched the lowest monthly total of the war, with 13 deaths — seven in combat — reported by the Defense Department.

The earlier low came in July of this year, as security improvements throughout the country translated into lowered violence targeted at U.S. troops.

The Pentagon figures for October mark the first time in the war that no U.S. combat deaths were reported in Iraq’s capital, Baghdad. The two Baghdad deaths were reported as nonhostile.

Security improvements have been attributed to the now-reversed troop "surge," a turning of tribes against al-Qaida and other militant groups, and the emergence of paid "Sons of Iraq" who patrol neighborhoods.

Last October, 38 U.S. deaths were reported in Iraq, and in 2006, there were 106 U.S. deaths.

Going to show, all along, that Jihad Jack Murtha was wrong, wrong, wrong about our ability to achieve peace and stability in the fledgling democracy.

Going to show that Murtha, the supposed "military expert" wouldn't know a victory if it came up and bit him on his "big fat backside."

Going to show that Murtha gave not one wit about men and women in harms' way in Iraq, choosing rather to embolden the enemy while he attempted to enrich his own political career.

Going to show, once and for all, that MURTHA MUST GO!!

Murtha Does it Again: Disrespect for PA-12 Voters

2008-10-31T16:58:00.005-05:00

From CentralPA.com:

Congressman John Murtha makes another comment that's upsetting some of his constituents.

Murtha actually made the comments in a live interview last week. He was talking about his challenger Bill Russell. And he got a little heated at the thought that his challenger might win the election.

He called his opponent a carpetbagger and he swore on live television while he did it. Murtha has since apologized about his language. He said he's a former drill instructor and sometimes lapses into that type of language. He said it's also because he gets so worked up about this election. And Murtha said he doesn't really have anything else to say about it.

Getting "worked up" about this election, are we, Jack? Could it be because you hear that distant sucking sound, that sound of your years of tenure, years of corruption, years of buying votes with taxpayer money, years of unchecked porkbarrel spending, going up in smoke?

Are you getting "worked up" because for once in your 17-term tenure, a fine upstart, an honorable man, for a change, stands poised to unseat you?

Are you getting "worked up" because your constituents are finally tiring of the unending "Huey Long" type of corruption, not to mention your disparaging, condescending comments made toward them, and even one of their own in uniform that you disparaged with extreme prejudice, for purposes of cheap, political gain?

Are you getting "worked up" because the gravy train you've worked so long to engineer, courtesy of U.S. taxpayers, may be about to derail?

Are you "worked up" because the corrupt political empire you built may be crumbling, courtesy of a man of honor who seeks to take your seat?

Is that why you're getting "worked up," Jack?

Heh. Sucks to be you.

Rep. Murtha, Stop The Smears

2008-10-29T20:24:00.003-05:00

Vets for Freedom sent Rep. John Murtha this letter telling him to stop smearing heroic Marines:

Dear Representative John Murtha,

In May 2006, you accused a group of United States Marines of killing “innocent civilians in cold blood”. You made these allegations during an ongoing investigation. In fact, a Marine Corps spokesman said that you made your statement a week before you had even been briefed.
You continued to accuse these eight Marines of "cold-blooded murder and war crimes”, even after the Marine Corps itself said your comments on the matter “would be inappropriate and could undermine the investigatory and possible legal process.”
As a result of the investigation, the charges were dropped against 7 of the 8 Marines and the other Marine is awaiting his day in court.
However, you have not withdrawn your statements or apologized for your defamatory remarks.

Marines implicated in the incident believe that you have committed slander and libel against them. These United States Marines, whose honor you have attacked, deserve to hear an apology from you.

We, the undersigned, implore you, Representative Murtha, as a man who serves the public in Congress, as a man who once served in the Marine Corps, to do the honorable thing.

You must apologize.

Signed,

Pete Hegseth, Vets for Freedom
Erick Erickson, Red State
Paul Mirengoff, Powerline
Marc Danziger, Winds of Change
Jim Hoft, Gateway Pundit
Roger L. Simon, Pajamas Media
Ed Morrissey, Hot Air
Alex Charyna, PA Watercooler
Eric Odom, Conservablogs
Michael Illions, Conservatives with Attitude
Scott W. Graves, Red County

Reading through VFF's letter felt like reading through my timeline post. This race is teetering on the brink. I know that because Murtha ran to MoveOn.org to fundraise. Here's the letter he sent out:

Dear Friends,

After decades of fighting for this country and our troops, I am up against the right-wing attack machine again.

Because of my work to end the Iraq war, they have thrown hundreds of thousands of dollars behind my opponent, who lives in Virginia with his family, not in my district in Pennsylvania. Now, I am suddenly being outspent 3 to 1.

They are up to the same old tricks, "swiftboating" me again as they did two years ago. So I am asking people who have stood with me on Iraq to stand with me again to stop them in their tracks.

Can you chip in $25 for me and a few other candidates at the link below?

https://pol.moveon.org/give/6days2.html?id=14796-4910505-NZUsM0x&t=3

This is a real emergency—with just 6 days left.

People like Rush Limbaugh, Bill O'Reilly and Sean Hannity are calling me a traitor and worse.

Initially, I brushed it off, because calling for a responsible end to the war was the right thing to do. Now, finally the Bush administration has started negotiating a timeline to bring our troops home, something I supported for almost three years.

This year I've spent most of my time campaigning and raising money for other Democrats, including Barack Obama, instead of myself. It worked in 2006 and we threw the Bush Republicans out. But now my own race is tight so I am asking supporters for help. Can you chip in?

When I ask for help, it is because I really need it. It is urgent. I will not back down from this fight, but I need you with me to repel the right-wing smear machine once again.

Thank you, God protect our troops and bless America.

–John P. Murtha
October 29, 2008

In reading through this fundraising letter, I spot 4 distinct lies:

1) I am up against the right-wing attack machine again.
2) They are up to the same old tricks, "swiftboating" me again as they did two years ago.
3) Because of my work to end the Iraq war, they have thrown hundreds of thousands of dollars behind my opponent.
4) People like Rush Limbaugh, Bill O'Reilly and Sean Hannity are calling me a traitor and worse.

Let's examine these one-by-one:

1) Rep. Murtha isn't "up against the right-wing attack machine." He's up against his own big mouth. He first called his constituents racists, then 'explained' it away by saying that he didn't mean that they were racists. Rather, he explained, his constituents were merely rednecks. Rep. Murtha should've obeyed the first rule of holes. He didn't. Instead, he went off on this hate-filled diatribe:

Rep. Murtha isn't up against the "right wing attack machine." He's burying himself.
2) How is VFF swiftboating him? If anything, Rep. Murtha swiftboated the Haditha Marines. As Pete Hegseth points out in their letter, Rep. Murtha accused the Haditha Marines of "killing innocent civilians in cold blood" before the investigation had finished.

Isn't that the definition of swiftboating?

3) People haven't "thrown hundreds of thousands of dollars behind" his opponent solely for his opposition to victory, though that's certainly part of it. People have also "thrown hundreds of thousands of dollars" at Lt. Col. Russell becausse people don't want an ethically-challenged person like Rep. Murtha wandering the halls of Congress any more. Finally, they're also contributing to Russell's campaign because they're incensed that a guy who touts himself as pro-military swiftboated the Haditha Marines based, at least in part, by a despicable Time Magazine article.

4) To the best of my recollection, Rush Limbaugh didn't call Rep. Murtha a traitor. Neither has Bill O'Reilly. I don't think that Sean Hannity has either but it's possible. Mentioning talk radio and FNC is a standard response for liberals, especially in fundraising letters. Just say those magic words and the rest of the sentence is irrelevant. The cash just pours in. FNC, Bill O'Reilly and talk radio is the 2008 equivalent of Halliburton.

I'd also add that what little was left of Rep. Murtha's credibility disappeared when he hinted that "calling for a responsible end to the war was the right thing to do." John Murtha didn't propose a "responsible end to the war." He called for losing the war, saying that we'd done all we could militarily. Later, he called for a plan to redeploy a rapid response force...in Okinawa.

That isn't responsible. That's plain stupid.

Finally, this must be a real emergency because Democratic leaders are donating money from their campaign and political action committees:

Rep. John P. Murtha is cashing in on his extensive network of House connections to help fend off a surging Republican challenge for his 12th District seat in Pennsylvania. The 17-term incumbent has raised more than $170,000 since Monday, a large slice of it from his Democratic colleagues.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California kicked in $7,000 from her campaign and political action committees, as did Democratic Caucus Chairman Rahm Emanuel of Illinois and Rep. James P. Moran of Virginia, a fellow member of the House Appropriations Committee.

Murtha's seat was considered safe until he made comments earlier this month referring to his home region as "racist." The widely publicized statement drew attention and support to his well-funded GOP challenger, William Russell, and led the National Republican Congressional Campaign Committee to jump into the race, pledging $84,000 in coordinated spending. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee responded yesterday with $2,400 to help pay for phone banks.

I don't have trouble believing that Murtha didn't have a phonebanking operation. Like he said, he didn't take Lt. Col. Russell seriously. I don't think anyone thought he'd be in a tight race, much less in a race he could easily lose.

The thing for conservatives to do now that Pelosi, et al, have donated to Mr. Corruption, is to donate to Lt. Col. Russell's campaign. It isn't likely Rep. Murtha will ever be this vulnerable again so let's make the most of this opportunity.

Technorati: John Murtha, Corruption, Haditha, Marines, Nancy Pelosi, Okinawa, Sean Hannity, Bill O'Reilly, Rush Limbaugh, William Russell, Election 2008

Cross-posted at California Conservative

Pork Over Principle: The Johnstown-Democrat gets out the defibrolator.

2008-10-26T19:55:00.010-05:00

Pork over Principle.

The Johnstown Tribune-Democrat, truly living up to its name, has once again thrown its scruples (if it had any to begin with) under the bus to try to resuscitate Jihad Jack Murtha's sorry political career. After falsely labeling William Trower Russell as a "carpetbagger," the two-bit call-girls on the editorial board of the Tribune go on to say,

• He is virtually a one-issue candidate, repeatedly attacking Murtha on his comments concerning Marines in Haditha, Iraq.

Yeah, I know... it's no biggie that Jack Murtha put 8 Marines and their families in a state of living hell for over two years with false accusations (for his own political aggrandizement), without so much as a subscription to the Jelly of the Month Club for the trouble he put them through. It's no big deal that he, an elected official sworn to uphold the Constitution of the United States, threw their Constitutional right to the presumption of innocence out the window. Yep... the same guys who put their lives on the line to defend that very Constitution.

But yes, I know. Pork over Principle.

The lemmings at the Tribune-Democrat go on in a lame, rambling attempt to rationalize their "principled" decision to back Jihad Jack:

For some politicians, “experience” simply means too many years drawing a comfortable salary and nice benefits on taxpayer dollars without giving much back.

That is not the case with Murtha, who has provided leadership and sparked the development of new programs in key areas, especially in the health-care arena:

• He helped increase funding for Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington, D.C., where service personnel returning from combat are treated for their injuries.

Yep... Jihad Jack cares so much about those who defend our country that he refuses to apologize to the Haditha Marines--not even to Justin Sharratt, who just happens to be Murtha's constituent! They go on to say,

• He has increased awareness and helped fund programs aimed at two of our region’s deadliest afflictions: Breast cancer and diabetes.

Pork, pork, pork, and more pork. There are beyond a doubt more pork projects with Jihad Jack's name in the Johnstown area than there were buildings with Caesar's name during the height of the Roman empire.

The Tribune Democrat then employs some feigned indignation at Murtha's arrogance against his own constituency:

We have been troubled by Murtha’s statements in recent weeks about racism in his district. He first said that “western Pennsylvania is a racist area,” then tried to clarify that a week later by saying there are a lot of “rednecks” in the region. We would like to see our congressman use better judgment and not attempt to lump all of his constituency into one category.

Yeah, I know.

Pork before Principle.

And, beyond all of that, Murtha’s social positions reflect those of his region much more so than those of his party. He opposes gun control and is pro-life, both positions that put him in step with most voters in our region.

Yep. Pro life and anti-gun control. I wonder if that's why he was pal-ing around with the likes of Nancy Pelosi and Code Pink. If Jihad Jack Murtha is so "in step" with how he sees most voters of PA-12, I wonder if he sees a "racist" or a "redneck" when he looks in the mirror. Likewise, I wonder if the editorial board at the Tribune-Democrat see the same thing when they take a shave in the morning.

Further, would most voters in PA-12 have the temerity to play judge, jury and executioner to those who defend freedom without the benefit of due process?

Somehow I doubt it.

But then again, Pork over Principle, right?

Once upon a time, when there wasn't an election on the line, the editorial board at the Johnstown Tribune-Democrat wrote:

We can’t accept the congressman’s earmark dollars with one hand and brush off his alleged transgressions with the other.

When he steps in mud, or when others throw mud at Murtha, we all get dirty.

That’s why, when questions are raised about possible improper activities at a Murtha-created organization, we get anxious.

And when a watchdog group rates our local congressman as being among “the most corrupt” lawmakers in Washington, we are embarrassed.

We don’t like being characterized as folks who support questionable activities, or who endorse troubling behavior by our elected officials.

Yet when the rubber hit the road, the Johnstown Tribune-Democrat found it fit to swallow their embarrassment and sell whatever remained of their principles to once again endorse a decidedly crooked politician to represent their readership in Washington.

Pork over principle, I guess.

We Heartily Concur

2008-10-24T10:39:00.005-05:00

Speaking for MMGers everywhere, we heartily agree with Michelle Malkin's NRO column. It's time that we booted Murtha for being a spinmeister, a corruption machine, an EX-Marine and for being the most dovish hawk in the House of Representatives. This paragraph is the perfect encapsulation of the choices the voters of PA-12 have:

The Democrat supports the pork-stuffed, debt-exploding government bailout for the banking industry. The Republican opposes it. The Democrat supports a raft of illegal-alien amnesty measures. The Republican opposes them. The Democrat supports race-baiting campaign rhetoric and contemptuous smears against both American troops and gun-owning, Bible-respecting citizens. The Republican opposes those divisive tactics and reckless slander.

Let's hope that the people in PA-12 have finally realized that Rep. Murtha hasn't helped their district that much. Yes, he's brought home a ton of bacon but most of that money goes to a few select cronies. It certainly hasn't helped the masses in PA-12.

I think that Rep. Murtha's statements calling his constituents racists, then explaining that they weren't racists, that they were rednecks instead, is proof that he's rattled. I think Murtha's feeling the heat from the Russell Brigade. I think that pressure is causing a number of Murtha misstatements. In turn, I think that's exposing the true John Murtha.

While you're thinking about Murtha's plentiful ethical lapses, stop past Brigade HQ and contribute to Russell's victory.

Technorati: John Murtha, Corruption, Earmarks, William Russell, Reformer, Election 2008

Cross-posted at California Conservative

PA-12 Residents Weigh In

2008-10-23T22:00:00.006-05:00

PA-12 voters are starting to register some disgust with Jihad Jack's seditious and arrogant antics. A good friend of mine from Pennsylvania writes,

"My cousin lives in Johnstown and she cannot stand Murtha. The sentiment is thick there now. I don't think he'll make it this year. Too many think he is senile."

Here are some LTE's From the Tribune-Democrat

Vote for a change of congressman

U.S. Rep. John Murtha has for many, many years been a good man and a good legislator.

I am a conservative Republican who has voted for him many, many times.

But it is time to vote Murtha out of office.

He was always a square shooter, but then he threw in with the Speaker of the House and apparently decided to do her will for political gain and power. He has abandoned his worthiness.

Turning his back on the Haditha Marines – who except for one man have been cleared of any wrongdoing – was very low.

Now, Murtha has called his constituents racist. That is a flat-out lie.

Murtha is trying to make excuses for the Democratic standardbearer, who is about to lose.

The reason western Pennsylvania won’t vote for Barack Obama is simply because no one knows who he is, other than a elitist liberal and big-time socialist.

The Associated Press can send 40 dirt-diggers to Anchorage, Alaska, but has not reported much about Obama.

If the qualifications of the two presidential candidates were reversed, there would be no racist talk.

All the racist talk is coming from the Democrats. This is planned so that when Obama loses he can do an Al Gore and send in his attorneys to throw out votes for his opponent.

On Nov. 4, vote for Republican Bill Russell.

David A. Murphy

New Florence

Racism comments insulting to voters

How dare U.S. Rep. John Murtha call his constituents racist (“Murtha: Western Pa. racist, but Obama should win the state,” Oct. 16), echoing what the rest of the Democratic party and the news media have been saying for months now.

Does Murtha think we’re too stupid to know he’s trying to subliminally sow the seeds of doubt in our minds and have us question ourselves about whether we’re racist or not?

He must believe that if he’s successful, he’ll trick us into voting by skin color rather than by the issues just so we can “prove” to ourselves that we’re not racist.

Murtha should know that many of us are smart enough to do our homework and vote issues rather than party.

We’ll vote issues rather than skin color as well.

Why don’t I read anything about the94 percent of black voters who support Obama being racist?

I’m a registered Republican, but I vote issues first.

I’ve voted for Murtha in the past as well as for state Rep. Tom Yewcic, another Democrat.

Murtha shouldn’t insult me or my neighbors like this.

It’s underhanded and manipulative, and for that I’ll not vote for him this year but instead I’ll support Bill Russell.

Darryl S. Hauck

Colver

Interestingly, there were no pro-Murtha letters at the site.

Two years ago, a fine candidate by the name of Diana Irey ran against Murtha. Although PA-12 voters gave her an impressive percentage of the vote, they weren't quite ready to give up their cash cow.

But now, more than ever, the stench of corruption and malfeasance has evidently become too much to bear.

PA-12, you will have good, honest representation in the name of William Trower Russell!

Going....Going.... Russell leads Murtha by Double Digits!!

2008-10-23T18:37:00.005-05:00

Michelle Malkin reports:(emphases added)

A Pennsylvania source has just leaked me brand spanking new poll data showing GOP upstart Bill Russell leading John Murtha among over 800 probable voters by 48-35.

This comes on top of the Susquehanna poll showing Murtha ahead of Russell by 4 points, within the margin of error.

The new poll is from Dane and Associates, which surveyed over 800 probable voters, randomly selected to reflect the district makeup, on Wednesday night.

I guess insulting the intelligence of your constiuents can get you only so far, eh Jack?

BTW, it probably wouldn't hurt to drop by Bill Russell's site and send a few bucks his way, just to nail Murtha's ass, but good.

A little look at history...

2008-10-23T17:33:00.006-05:00

John Murtha's history of being a robber-baron, playing free and easy with the toils of the taxpayers, is far from being a short one. Let me take you on a trip down memory lane to Murtha's challenge from another democrat opponent, Frank Mascara, in 2002

Murtha challenged Mascara to a debate early in the campaign. Mascara quickly accepted, but Murtha said he couldn't fit the debates into his schedule. So Mascara offered a $1,000 bounty to anyone who could convince Murtha to debate. The money went unclaimed.
While Mascara was trying to get Murtha to debate, Murtha was announcing millions of dollars worth of federal grants and projects throughout the 12th District.
As the second-ranking Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, Murtha has control over military spending and has steered defense-related contracts to companies throughout the district. Murtha's slogan, "the congressman who delivers," became the theme of his campaign.
Murtha made immediate inroads in the new district. At one point, he dealt Mascara a blow in the heart of his 20th District by awarding a $2 million grant to a center that retrains unemployed coal miners at California University of Pennsylvania, Mascara's alma mater.
Mascara had enjoyed support from the United Mine Workers of America through the Greene-Fayette-Washington areas, but the union endorsed Murtha for re-election.

That's all Murtha had to do to win votes. A little pork here, a little pork there, paid for by the very taxpayers he supposedly serves. When asked about his opponent after the election, a gloating, self-aggrandizing Murtha declared:

"I usually don't take things like this personally, but I did this time. He was desperate. He wanted to win so bad he would stoop to anything. I haven't heard from him, and I don't expect to."

He would "...stoop to anything to win," eh Jack? You mean like your decision to betray your country during a time of war by starting an unprecedented negative propaganda campaign against our troops and their mission; just like the time in May of 2005 when you threw 15 Haditha Marines under the bus for your own political aggrandizement, just so you could win the House Majority Seat?

Seems like Mr. Mascara learned from the best...er worst. But let's face it-- on Mascara's meanest, most unscrupulous day, he could never stoop so low or be so ruthless as Jihad Jack Murtha.

Murtha's Grip Loosening?

2008-10-23T10:57:00.000-05:00

Based on this article in the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, it's apparent that John Murtha's steely grip on PA-12 has substantially loosened. Mike Wereschagin and David Brown do a great job of finding people that likely would've voted in virtual lockstep for Rep. Murtha. Now, many are either undecided or voting for William Russell.

Democratic Rep. John Murtha leads retired Army Lt. Col. William Russell by a little more than 4 percentage points, within the Susquehanna Poll's 4.9-point margin of error. The poll of 400 likely voters was conducted for the Tribune-Review on Tuesday, amid uproar over Murtha's statement that some of his constituents are racist.

Stanley Shemanski, 67, a retired meat cutter who lives in Apollo, said he's undecided about the congressional race. He doesn't know much about Russell, but he's upset with Murtha's comment that racism in the district could hurt Democrat Barack Obama's chances.

"I didn't like that at all. He shouldn't have said it," Shemanski said.

Most of all, the national economy concerns him. "I'm retired, but my daughter, she works for the bank, and I'm worried about that."

It's my opinion that, if this race were decided on policies and/or ethics, Murtha would've been defeated ages ago. He's a walking corruption zone. Until now, people were willing to overlook the corruption because he brought home the bacon.

While it isn't time to write Rep. Murtha off, it's certainly time to contribute to Russell's campaign. Think of it this way. Your contribution might buy the advertising that breaks the porkster's back and sends him into involuntary retirement.

Murtha's racist/rednecks comments haven't endeared him to his constituents. It's time to defeat him when he's most vulnerable. That's right now. It's unlikely that Rep. Murtha will be more vulnerable than right now. That's why it's important to go for the electoral juglar. It's time to put him out of our misery.

Technorati: John Murtha, Racists, Rednecks, Corruption, William Russell, Iraq War Veteran, Election 2008

Lt. Col. William Russell in the News

2008-10-23T06:48:00.001-05:00

Check out the Russell interview here.

Also, Mark Hemingway does a bang-up job reporting about the Russell campaign here.

Jihad Jack Murtha: San Francisco Elitist (Wannabe)

2008-10-21T22:23:00.002-05:00

For years, Congressman Jack Murtha had been a major behind-the-scences powerbroker in the U.S. House. He pretty much pulled the strings in all things defense, and nothing happened without it going through him first. But despite the power that Jack Murtha had, he was, in the end, still behind the scenes.

Tired of being the red-headed step-child of the democrat party, Congressman Jack Murtha (PA-12) devised a plan that he hoped would propel him to the ranks of the democrat elite. So back on a bleak November day in 2005, Jack Murtha took out his thirty pieces of silver, and traded them for what he hoped would be a seat at the movon.org power structure of the DNC. An ex-Marine, Murtha willingly gave cover to the democrat party in their bid to set into motion an unprecedented, unsrupulous, and unprincipled campaign to make political hay out of the war in Iraq by pushing to ensure its failure, damn the casualties. From that fateful day in November, 2005, Murtha (at least in his own mind) became the absolute toast of the democrat anti-war kook left.

Feeling stuck in a position of being a backroom powerbroker in D.C., Jack felt he deserved a more prominent spot at the table of power. Safe in the womb of his own district from years and years and millions upon millions in taxpayer-supplied pork spending, Murtha felt (and was at the time) invulnerable. Jack therefore felt it safe to cast his lot with the looniest of the leftists, in a whorish effort to gain favor with those who would nourish his already checkered political career. Betting that the U.S. Congress would change hands in the 2006 elections, Jack Murtha became more and more virulent in his anti-war rhetoric. he even went so far as to throw eight of his Marine brethren under the bus in May of 2006, when without evidence he played judge, jury and executioner in the Haditha incident; an incident in which all were exonerated (and for which Murtha to this day refuses to apologize).

With his eyes ever on the prize, and with his rheteric growing ever more ruthless and reckless, Jack Murtha looked forward to the day when he, too, would be invited to all the right cocktail parties, and be seen as an equal with the rest of the anti-American elite democrat power structure. Visions of Soviet hammers and sickles danced in his head, and he probably orgasmed in his pants when his dream of a democrat takeover of Congress came through in November of 2005. Murtha was the pied piper of death and destruction in his role in sabotaging the war effort for the democrat party, and felt that he must be paid. Speaker Pelosi agreed, and placed upon Jack Murtha her impiratur for the coveted House Majority Leader spot. Nothing could stop Jack from finally achieving the apex of his congressional career, and was looking forward to being coronated as the second highest ranking member in the U.S. House.

Or so he thought.

You see, Murtha, like any member of the white limousine liberal kook-left plantation, was expendable. Not too many people liked him in the first place. Murtha proved his usefulness in handing the democrats a 2006 electoral victory. His usefulness gone, their victories won, the DNC power structure that Jack Murtha so wanted to be a part of, for which he sold his very soul, threw him under the bus like the sack of disposable diapers that he is. Like a college frat that uses a dweeb pledge to take the fall for a major prank and then dumps him, the DNC power structure rejected Murtha's bid, and nearly laughed in his face doing it.

Dejected, but not broken, Murtha continued his stint as major pork-broker in the U.S. House, and continued to line his political coffers with donations from the beneficiaries of Murtha's looseness with the publicly funded largesse.

But you see, to this very day, Jihad Jack Murtha wants to continue to endear himself to the tainted left, to be wanted and loved, and wanted so much to be considered relevant, that he is willing to throw not only Marines, but his very constituency under the bus. Calling PA-12 residents racists the other day, and then rednecks today, Murtha is trying desperately to continue to be accepted by the democrat D.C. power structure who continue to treat him like a house boy. Knowing that Obama will lose in a decidedly conservative military district, Murtha is striving to apologize for the very people who have placed him in power lo these 17 congressional terms.

Jack Murtha's story has all the makings of a Greek tragedy, only his actions have had some very real consequences, His megalomaniacal penchant for power has, in my opinion (and others') had the net effect of prolonging the war; and his aid and comfort given to our enemies have resulted in unnecessary and untold loss of life and subsequent grief to soldiers and their families.

Jack Murtha may never fit in with the San Francisco elite he is trying so desperately to emulate and to be a part of, but one thing is for sure: for his entire sorry political career, the only thing that has ever mattered to Jack Murtha, is and was, Jack Murtha.

From" Racists" To "Rednecks", Flattery Will Get You Nowhere Jihad Jackoff

2008-10-21T00:37:00.001-05:00

Will he come out Wednesday and claim he really didn't mean to call them racists or rednecks, he really meant to say Jerry Springer loving White trash? Never know as his senility reaches new heights previously detected.

So at this juncture can someone take ol' Jack out to the proverbial woods like a suffering hound and possibly put him out of his obvious political misery and increasing dementia before he finally says something that gets someone hurt, just like it did to our 8 brave soldiers in Haditha, Iraq, likely getting other soldiers killed as a result, thanks to the apprehension they all must carry with them in the field of battle, afraid they'll become the next target of not Al Queda but their own government with Jihad himself driving the Humvee of innuendo and personal destruction.

Pennsylvanians, please tell me you've finally had enough of the Haditha Hog who needs to finally be sent to the butcher once and for all after this past week of insulting anyone and everyone he could manage. After all, what'll it take to finally raise the ire of you folks may I ask? Isn't being referred to as Rednecks and Racists just a little too much from your own congressman?

I sure would hope so.....otherwise if you don't send him packing now. I would have to say he may just be right about you all at the end of the day.

Murtha Calls Western Pa. 'Redneck' -

Pittsburgh News Story - WTAE Pittsburgh: "CHARLEROI, Pa. -- U.S. Rep. John Murtha is calling many of the people who put him in office 'rednecks.'
The news comes one week after Murtha claimed the area is racist, then apologized for that comment.
In explaining his comments about racism, Murtha told WTAE it's difficult for many in the area to change. Murtha said that just five to 10 years ago the entire area was 'redneck.'
Now Murtha said only certain segments of the population are holding on to those racist feelings.
Just days after classifying western Pennsylvania as racist, Murtha took a step back from those comments, albeit a small one.
'What I said, that indicted everybody, that's not what I meant at all. What I mean is there's still folks that have a problem voting for someone because they are black,' Murtha said."

Boy oh Boy.....

PA 12--Murtha says you're racist.

2008-10-16T17:10:00.002-05:00

Yep... that's what he said.

U.S. Rep. John Murtha made a comment Wednesday about a region of his state of Pennsylvania that raised a few eyebrows.
Citing race as the lone factor why some voters in the western part of the state will not vote for Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama, Murtha said flatly the western part of the state is “racist.”
“There is no question that western Pennsylvania is a racist area,” Murtha said.

Forget that you in PA-12 may have your own reasons for not voting for Obama, reasons that have absolutely nothing to do with race. Your own elected U.S. Congressman thinks you're racist.

PA-12, isn't it time you sent this self-serving, senile old gasbag to retirement?

Who’s Investigating the Investigators?

2008-10-13T23:33:00.001-05:00

One of the things that popped into my head as I read TMLC's statement was whether anyone was investigating the investigators or the military personnel making rulings at the various hearings. Here's what got me started wondering about that:

The investigation of the “Haditha Marines” by over 65 Naval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) agents is the largest investigation in that agency’s history according to the director of that agency.

It isn't possible that that many investigators objectively examined that much information, including videotape from UAV's that monitored the firefight and audiotape communications between the Haditha Marines and the command center, and thought that there was a basis for charges against the Haditha Marines.

Capt. Dinsmore testified via video from Iraq that they knew in advance that there was an insurgent attack planned for November 19, 2005. They knew that a white car would play an important role in the ambush.

Here's what I posted over a year ago from John Murtha's interview with Charlie Gibson:

GIBSON: Jonathan just mentioned, there’s no charges yet filed against any of the Marines that were in this outfit, but Jonathan mentioned a moment ago, defense lawyers are already saying, well, there’s drone video and there is actual radio traffic to higher-ups that will give a different picture than you have been talking about of this incident. What do you know about that?

Why hasn't NCIS come under closer scrutiny? They're responsible for this witch hunt. Why aren't they being held accountable?

As I said earlier today, Col. Steven Folsom dismissed all charges against Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani on the grounds that there was "unlawful command influence" involved in bringing the charges against Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani. This is about as serious a charge as can be brought against the convening authorities. Here's what USMilitary.org says about UCI:

UCI occurs when senior personnel, wittingly or unwittingly, have acted to influence court members, witnesses, or others participating in military justice cases. Such unlawful influence not only jeopardizes the validity of the judicial process, it undermines the morale of military members, their respect for the chain of command, and public confidence in the military.

It isn't a stretch to think that the influence in this instance was intentional. Putting it in betting parlance, the fix was in. If this happened in criminal court, the possible range of charges might include obstruction of justice, subornation of perjury, witness tampering and/or jury tampering.

Let's think of this from a civilian standpoint. The investigators would be part of the prosecution's team. They'd likely be a law enforcement organization like the FBI or a police or sheriff's department. If a judge ruled that a law enforcement organization had fixed a trial, rest assured that there'd be front page headlines in the local paper talking about the criminal activity.

The next logical question I'd ask is whether courts-martial trials were being determined by legislators. This deserves a full-scale investigation. I'd specifically want to know if John Murtha, Norm Dicks or Ike Skelton exerted pressure on NCIS investigators or on the Article 32 hearings. If they did, they should be immediately expelled from the House of representatives.

That type of behavior is unacceptable, especially when it involves true American heroes who followed the ROE.

Technorati: NCIS, Investigations, Article 32 Hearings, Haditha, John Murtha, Norm Dicks, Ike Skelton, Unlawful Command Influence, Perjury, Tampering, Obstruction of Justice

Cross-posted at California Conservative

Setting the Haditha Record Straight

2008-10-13T23:29:00.003-05:00

I've been following John Murtha's attempted railroading of the Haditha Marines since May, 2006. After learning the details of what happened in Haditha, I then focused on what's been happening in the military injustice system. It's been difficult to watch the purely political machinations within the persecutions. This morning, the Thomas More Law Center (TMLC) issued a statement that their appeal to the Navy-Marine Corps Court of Criminal Appeals court will be this Friday. Here's part of the text of their statement:

Richard Thompson, President and Chief Counsel of the Law Center, commented, “For the last two and a half years, Lt. Colonel Chessani, has been investigated and prosecuted for his involvement in the so-called "Haditha massacre", a massacre the Government now knows never happened. This loyal officer who served 20 years defending our nation, including three tours of duty in Iraq, has been made a political scapegoat to appease anti-war Congressman John Murtha and the liberal press.”
Thompson continued, “The outcome of this case could have a negative impact on our national security. If the Government succeeds with this prosecution, every combat commander will know that difficult battlefield decisions can end up with a politically motivated criminal prosecution based on insurgent-driven propaganda.”

It's time that we turned up the heat on the powers that be and force an end to this charade. That means pressuring the politicians behind this persecution.

Lt. Col. Chessani is essentially charged with covering up a military crime. As Mr. Thompson notes, the military now knows that a military crime wasn't committed. That isn't opinion. It's a finding of fact evidenced by the dropping of charges against 5 of the 8 Marines. That's evidenced by the acquittal of another of the accused Marines. The only people who haven't been officially been cleared are Lt. Col. Chessani and SSgt. Wuterich. Again, it's time for this charade to end.

Here's another important portion of TMLC's statement:

Background of LtCol Chessani’s Case
On November 19, 2005, at approximately 7:15 a.m., a Marine convoy was rolling through Haditha, Iraq, a terrorist stronghold. Suddenly, a roadside bomb went off destroying a Marine Humvee, killing one Marine, and seriously injuring two others.
The Marines immediately received fire from the ambushing insurgents, who were shooting from nearby civilian-occupied homes. A four-man fire team responded as trained; they cleared several houses occupied by the armed insurgents. In the ensuing room-by-room, house-by-house gun battle, 8 enemy insurgents were killed.

Tragically 15 civilians also died, in urban combat, where insurgents purposefully use civilians as human shields, civilian casualties are tragic, but not uncommon. In fact, sometimes the insurgents themselves kill civilians to achieve a propaganda victory by blaming the Americans.

I talked about these events in this post:

That's one of the bullet points in Phil Brennan's June 7, 2007 article. Here's the full set of bullet points:
Intelligence gathered by Marine S2 officers in advance of the events of Nov. 19th, 2005, revealed that it was known that an insurgent ambush was planned for the day.
Although exact details of the planned ambush were not known, some important details were revealed, most importantly, that some 20 insurgents would take part, and a white car would play an important role in the ambush.
The intelligence was made available to the officers and men of Kilo Company, including Sgt. Frank Wuterich who has been charged with, among other things, murdering the occupants of a white car that came on the scene following the IED explosion that killed one Marine and seriously wounded another. The evidence will show that Wuterich acted appropriately when he shot the passengers of the vehicle.
Although the media continues to report that 24 innocent civilians were killed that day, the S2's testimony shows that eight of the dead, including four of the five occupants in the white car killed by Wuterich, were known insurgents and the dead civilians therefore numbered 16, not 24.
The insurgents whose communications were intercepted and which revealed the planned ambush were the same two men who were the sources of the fallacious and dishonest Time magazine story, which was the source of the accusations against the Marines.
As previously reported by NewsMax, the battalion S2 officer made a full and complete report based on his monitoring of the day's events and the intelligence he and others had amassed then and previous days. As we wrote at the time, the PowerPoint after-action report he sent up the command ladder proved to all the higher officers that the incident warranted no further investigation. None!

Jeffrey Dinsmore's testimony at the Article 32 hearing shows two things: (a) that a massacre didn't happen and (b) that the officers reported everything that happened. Since it's now a legal finding of fact that the massacre didn't happen and that a detailed PowerPoint presentation was put together, then sent up the chain of command, it isn't a stretch to think that this continued charade is purely political theater.

If the military wants to convince us that the word justice means anything to them, they must immediately end this charade. At this point, I'm not convinced that justice is an important consideration for the military. If it was, Colonel Steven A. Folsom wouldn't have issued a ruling of unlawful command influence in the case of Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani. If justice was their primary goal, they wouldn't continue this charade.

Let's recognize that Rep. Murtha first lied about this on May 17, 2006. he then lied about where he got his information from, first saying that he was getting his information "from the commanders, it comes from people who know what they’re talking about.” It didn't take long before that story changed:

Murtha, a Pennsylvania Democrat, is being sued by one of the accused Marines for libel. He had told The Philadelphia Inquirer that Gen. Michael Hagee had given him the information on which he based his charge that Marines killed innocent civilians.
But a spokesman for the Marine Corps said Hagee briefed Murtha on May 24 about Haditha. Murtha had made comments on the case as early as May 17.

Rep. Murtha's version of events has changed frequently, which says he isn't telling the truth.

It's time that the military acted in the interest of justice towards Lt. Col. Chessani and SSgt. Wuterich. If they're interested in justice, they should correct their mistake ASAP.

Technorati: Haditha, John Murtha, Jeffrey Chessani, Frank Wuterich, Jeffrey Dinsmore, Time Magazine, Insurgents, Investigations, Article 32 Hearings

Cross-posted at California Conservative

Jihad Jack Murtha: Fashionably Corrupt.

2008-10-13T19:31:00.003-05:00

Even liberal-leaning Esquire Magazine can't stand the stench, calling Murtha "..one of the "10 worst" incumbents in the Republic."

While the majority of Keystone State races get simple capsule endorsements, there's one PA lawmaker who gets singled out for particular attention. And that's U.S. Rep. John Murtha, D-12th, who makes the magazine's list of the "10 Worst" incumbents in the Republic.
Murtha makes the list for his "breathtaking earmarks," for his Johnstown-based district ($100 million a year), and for his opposition to ethics reform in the House, which he labeled "total crap."

Congratulations, Jack. First you solidified your bonafides as a cheap opportunist with making the most corrupt politician in CREW's Top Ten; now you've made Esquire.

Hey PA-12... you embarrassed yet?

Arrogant Murtha to Americans: "Tough Shit."

2008-10-12T11:50:00.009-05:00

Jack Murtha is undoubtedly not only the most corrupt member of congress, but the most arrogant.

When complaints arose that it is still difficult to find information regarding earmarks embedded in legislation, Murtha had a wonderful answer to those Americans who wish to know where their tax dollars are going:

Last year, Congress promised to shed light on the secretive process. But the lists of earmarks are still buried in obscure documents that are difficult to find and search. Until Congress put them online a couple of weeks ago, the House disclosure letters, linking lawmakers to companies, were thick volumes of paper kept in a cabinet in the offices of the House Appropriations Committee.

When a reporter for Congressional Quarterly pointed out how difficult it remains to pull all the information together, Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa., chairman of the committee that drafts the defense bill, had a quick answer: “Tough shit.”

"Tough Shit," Jack? Is that what you have to say to the cry for more transparency in government?

Much to your amazement, Jihad Jack, the people of PA-12 elected you to be a public servant, not an elite member of royalty.

PA-12, it's high time to say, "Tough Shit!" to his "royal heinous" at the ballot box. Say NO to Murtha, and say YES to William Russell!

****UPDATE****

Welcome Freepers, Just One Minute, and Calaveras Today Readers. We at MMG have been chronicling the misdeeds of Jack Murtha ever since he unjustly and falsely pronounced guilt over the Haditha Marines in May of 2006, without an official briefing.

Please click here for more information as to why Murtha Must Go!

Murtha and earmarks: Like Peas & Carrots!

2008-10-12T11:34:00.003-05:00

Murtha and the rest of the corrupt congress continue to refuse to follow their own rules:

And Congress broke its pledge — and President Bush's challenge — to cut earmarks in half. Lawmakers cut the dollar amount of defense earmarks by about a fourth and the number by 19 percent.

The hidden earmarks range from $8 million for lighting sold by a financially troubled company in North Carolina to $588 million for a submarine the administration doesn't want.

After months of investigating the $459 billion 2008 defense bill, The Times found:

• The hidden $3.5 billion included 155 earmarks, among them the most costly in the bill. Congress disclosed 2,043 earmarks worth $5 billion.

• The House broke the new rules at least 110 times by failing to disclose who was getting earmarks, making it difficult for the public to judge whether the money is being spent wisely.

• In at least 175 cases, senators did not list themselves in Senate records as earmark sponsors, appearing more fiscally responsible. But they told a different story to constituents back home in news releases, claiming credit for the earmarks and any new jobs.

Lawmakers do not face penalties for failing to follow these ethics rules.

"The whole ethics bill was a sham," said Sen. Jim DeMint, a Republican from South Carolina, after being told of The Times' findings.

This continuing scandal shows the grubby little fingerprints of the Pork King, himself:

One congressman's fingerprints, however, weren't so easy to conceal. Latrobe sits in the congressional district of Rep. John Murtha, a Democrat who chairs the subcommittee that drafts the defense bill and wields the most power over defense earmarks.

Latrobe's officials have given $5,000 to Murtha's re-election fund in the past two years.

Also, Murtha had talked about giving taxpayer dollars to Latrobe. "We're trying to get together to see how we can work out an increased capacity for that particular company," Murtha said at a subcommittee hearing in April 2007. "I've talked to that producer. And what I'd like to see is them put some money in, us put some money in, and reduce the time it takes to get those spare parts out."

This spring, the Air Force carried out the earmark by asking companies to submit proposals for a $16.6 million research grant that would expand production of specialty steel made through "vacuum induction melting and vacuum arc remelting."

The money was aimed at alleviating the shortage of specialty steel.

But the foreign-steel ban proved so restrictive that the military and major defense contractors, such as Boeing, complained that they couldn't get parts. In December, Congress loosened the ban.

Latrobe has tentatively won the research grant, a Pentagon spokeswoman confirmed, although details are still being worked out.

The company would not comment on any discussions it had with Murtha. A spokeswoman defended getting the grant, saying it had been competitively bid. Even so, she acknowledged that Latrobe is the sole U.S. producer of certain specialty steels, a requirement for getting the money.

She said Latrobe was a few months away from completing the $62 million expansion while it waits for the government handout.

Through a spokesman, Murtha said the project was not an earmark because the contract was competitively bid. Last year at a hearing, however, Murtha talked of giving Latrobe funding because it was the only U.S. company that could make that steel.

I'm telling you, PA-12. There is a better way.

Murtha: Trying to Lose the War We're In

2008-10-04T09:24:00.004-05:00

Not only did Murtha call for immediate surrender from Iraq as early as November 2005; not only did Murtha continually state that there was no way to win the Iraq war; not only did Murtha continually undermine the troops and their mission, calling them cold-blooded murderers, Jihad Jack Murtha continues even to this day to undermine our national security, not only for now, but in the future. As Tom Donnelly notes in the Weekly Standard,

Even as Gates was telling unpleasant truths to people in uniform--for it is they who will most bear the brunt of the Long War--congressional Democrats revealed how deeply they remain a state of denial. Rep. John Murtha, the chairman of the House appropriations defense subcommittee, announced his opposition to the Bush administration’s plan (and the supposed position of presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama) to increase the size of the active-duty Army and Marine Corps. Taking a page out of the Rummy pre-9/11 playbook, Murtha declared that the Pentagon “is going to have to cut personnel in order to pay for procurement.”

To be sure, the Defense Department faces critical budget problems. Procurement needs are genuine: Most current major U.S. weapons systems are products of the Reagan build-up. But, as Gates puts it, you have to win the war you’re in. The Bush troop plan is, if anything, a belated half-measure, a snail-paced increase that would bring the combined size of the Army and Marine Corps to about 750,000 in 2013, just 10 percent more than it was in 2005. Sen. John McCain has called for a larger, longer-term surge that would bring total land-force strength to 900,000.

The theme of Gates’s NDU speech was a warning about the limits of wonder weapons. While lauding “advances in precision, sensor, information and satellite technology,” he admonished the military to “never neglect the psychological, cultural, political and human dimensions of warfare, which is inevitably tragic, inefficient and uncertain.” He concluded his talk with words from one of the greatest American practitioners of irregular warfare, Gen. “Vinegar Joe” Stilwell, whose experience taught him “no matter how a war starts, it ends in mud. It has to be slugged out--there are no trick solutions or cheap shortcuts.” It is ironic that Gates, the soft-spoken former intelligence officer, better understands the need for boots on the ground than Murtha, the gruff former Marine.

But Murtha led the way when Democrats turned hard against the Iraq war in 2006; without his imprimatur, surely, Speaker Nancy Pelosi might have moderated her anti-war, San Francisco instincts. Apparently the Democratic strategy is now to limit the prospects for future mischief--that is, the prospects for successfully waging the Long War--by withholding the manpower that is needed. They’re doubling down on defeat.

Jack Murtha continues to lead the charge toward bringing the United States down to a third-world power. Murtha's actions and inactions are making it quite clear that he intends to utilize our national security as a political football instead of giving it the serious consideration it deserves.

Time and time again, Murtha has shown that he's dangerous, both to boots presently on the ground, as well as to our nation's future security.

PA-12, the nation looks to you. It's high time that MURTHA MUST GO!!

Americans, the choice is stark. Lt. Col. William Russell (ret) is a man of honor, and deserves our support!

Johnstown-Democrat..still in bed with Murtha...

2008-10-03T20:30:00.009-05:00

With regard to the pending lawsuit by PA-12 constituent Justin Sharratt against Jihad Jack Murtha, the editors at the Johnstown-Democrat no doubt had a huge lump in their throat and a scowl on their face when they begrudgingly penned the following:

We certainly hope justice is done in this case.

That would mean that if Murtha truly damaged someone’s reputation with false accusations, that he face the music in court.

The rules should be no different for public officials than for the rest of us.

But the editors, still in love with their self-absorbed, repugnant, corrupt congressman from PA-12, couldn't help but add the following salt to the wounds of those already unjustly besmirched by Murtha:

We would also hope that the courts – military and civilian – are making every effort to be certain that those who are cleared of wrongdoing deserve that treatment. War means dangerous circumstances, but even in such a setting, crimes against civilians should not be tolerated.

There was no "crime" against civilians perpetrated by U.S. Marines. Period. If there was a crime against civilians, it was perpetrated by the terrorists, who, against the Geneva Convention and the rules of war, chose to utilize civilians as human shields in time of war and during a firefight. And the sycophant editors at the Tribune-Democrat go on to offer yet another "caveat" with regard to their faux consternation of Jihad Jack:

We also understand that there is a political side to this situation – although Geary said: “There’s no political motivation whatsoever. This is purely a legal endeavor.”

Republican challenger William Russell has made Murtha’s Haditha comments his rallying cry in attempting to unseat the longtime incumbent."

Damn right there's politics involved! It takes politics to unseat a dirty politician with a scandalous record a mile long, and it's high time that a man of honor in the name of William Russell has stepped up to the challenge. The editors go on to say,

While the courts ultimately will decide Murtha’s fate concerning the lawsuit, voters will have their say in a month.

You're damned right about that. And the fawning editors at the Johnstown Democrat will more than likely be crying in their coffee once their corrupt golden calf is sent to retirement on November 4th.

***UPDATE****

Welcome Fellow Freepers! Please click here for the latest posts, including exclusive pieces by Darryl Sharratt.

MMG EXCLUSIVE: HADITHA PROSECUTIONS- We lived IT

2008-09-30T20:54:00.001-05:00

by Darryl R. Sharratt

My wife and I protected and educated my son for eighteen years. When he enlisted in the United States Marine Corps, my family and I felt secure in the belief the Corps would continue his education and maturation process. As part of the enlistment procedure all recruits take an oath ‘to defend and protect the Constitution of the United States.’ Little did we know that the judicial process within our military would deny him the Constitutional rights he took an oath to safeguard.

The Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) is broken. The Marine Corps investigative authority, Naval Criminal Investigation Service (NCIS), is an organization with no oversight and operates with the impunity of the Russian KGB. In a pre- 9/11 world the UCMJ and NCIS floundered to keep judicial equilibrium within the military. Using coerced, manufactured and falsified evidence provided by the NCIS, criminal cases rarely found their way to Article 32’s and almost never to Courts Martial. Most were plea bargained into judicial obscurity. JAG officers, Junior Officers. Senior Officers and the Convening Authorities rationalized these improprieties as a means to maintain discipline within its ranks. To maintain the status quo was the final objective. The needs of the many outweigh the rights of the few. High profile cases labeled the Iron Triangle(Sgt Ray Girouard), Hamandia(the Pendleton 8) and Haditha- to name a few- are exposing the un-Constitutional operation of the UCMJ and the corrupt investigative tactics of the NCIS.

I admit I lack first-hand knowledge and evidence in the Iron Triangle and Hamandia prosecutions. Regarding Haditha, a day rarely goes by when I am not thinking and reliving the false persecution of these seven Marines, Our Haditha Marines. On 21 December 2006 my family and son were dragged into the abyss by the UCMJ and its NCIS counterpart. My son was charged with three counts of unpremeditated murder for his part in a firefight on 19 November 2005 in Haditha, Iraq.

It is hard for me to keep separate the UCMJ and NCIS—for in my mind they are one. When I think back to my son’s Article 32 hearing, those five days in July, 2007 will remain with me forever. As evidence was presented in the hearing I could not understand nor will I ever understand what we were doing there. The Marine Corps, expressly the Senior Command structure, buckled to the media and politicians. My son would have been thrown to the wolves if not for the veracity of the civilian law firm my family engaged for his defense.

Naval Criminal Investigative Services (NCIS)

It was apparent from the testimony of NCIS Special Agent Mark Platt that the government was conducting the Haditha investigations with a guided agenda. While under cross examination SA Platt confirmed many times that he was following specific instructions from his superiors as to the path of the investigation. When asked by our defense counsel why he didn’t investigate leads which would have uncovered exculpatory evidence of innocence, SA Platt retorted he was following the orders of his superiors. When further pressured by the defense, SA Platt revealed he was investigating a murder.

Why an experienced NCIS investigator would not follow all leads in a capital investigation was the focal point of his cross examination. SA Platt’s testimony was that “I was following the instructions of my superiors.” It was apparent the NCIS was trying to uncover any evidence which would incriminate Our Haditha Marines and disregard the evidence which proved their innocence.

The government offered statements by Marines in an effort to support its version of the facts. A LCpl testified under oath that certain events in his written statement were not true and that an NCIS agent inserted these lines into the statement. The LCpl was now on record as providing two contradictory sworn statements. One under direct cross examination and the other provided by the NCIS.

The testimony of NCIS Special Agent Nadya Mannle further revealed the agenda of the NCIS. SA Mannle conducted an interview of the Iraqi witnesses. Although she spoke no Arabic, SA Mannle allowed the witnesses to gather in a group setting to answer questions. Through an interpreter a question and answer dialogue was conducted with the Iraqis. Defense lawyers grilled SA Mannle as to the policy of conducting a group interview of these witnesses. Such procedure went against all known guidelines in the interrogation process. SA Mannle could only answer that time was limited so the group interview was allowable.

The testimony gathered in this group interview by SA Mannle formed the basis of the charges filed against my son. In the Article 32 hearing, the IO LtCol Paul Ware found this testimony “unreliable and incredible.” Lt Col Ware also stated, “ the interview that resulted in the witness statements were taken by SA Mannle in a group setting, with each witness adding details and discussing the events in Arabic with one another in front of SA Mannle who does not speak Arabic.” I detail some of the key discrepancies in the Iraqi testimony as follows:

1. Khalid testified that the tall one, the one with the pistol, guarded the women and children in House 3. My son was the tallest Marine, he was the only Marine with a pistol. If Khalid’s testimony is correct, my son was guarding the women and children in House 3 and did not enter House 4 where the insurgents were killed. My son was charged with murder for the killings in House 4.

2. Nagham stated that no one moved the bodies in House 4 before the Marines arrived to take photographs. Forensic evidence clearly proves the bodies must have been moved from the location where they fell.

3. Khalid further testified he heard only “ four shots separated by a few seconds.”

(pop-pause, pop-pause, pop-pause, pop-pause) Testimony of the other witnesses revealed they (the Iraqis) recovered 11 spent shell casings from House 4. The NCIS pathology report details the trajectories of at least 7 projectiles in House 4.

4. Nagla states that the man with the pistol was in charge telling the other Marines what to do. LtCol Ware found it unbelievable that two senior Marines would subjugate themselves to a LCpl (my son, the Marine with the pistol) under these conditions.

5. Ehab states one of the insurgents was packed and about to travel to Trabeed. This contradicts Nagham who said the “family” was packed and traveling to Baghdad.

6. Khalid testifies that the Marines leaving House 4 had two AK-47’s slung on their shoulders. His account of seeing these weapons being removed from House 4 supports the Marine’s testimony that at least two of the Iraqi insurgents had AK-47’s when they were shot.

In my sons Article 32 hearing, SA Mannle stated she found this “Iraqi testimony to be truthful and believable.” My son passed a polygraph examination proving he was telling the truth!

SA Mannle would later become the lead investigator in the Haditha investigations and the Titling Agent to prefer charges against my son. Charges based solely on the testimony of these Iraqis.

A further indictment on the character of the NCIS can be garnered from the testimony of a Marine intelligence officer during the Haditha discovery phase. Marine Captain Jeffrey Dinsmore(now Major Dinsmore) testified during a deposition session he turned over evidence in the Haditha case to NCIS agents circa January, 2006. This evidence included Scan Eagle surveillance video, digital recordings of voice traffic from engaged squads in Haditha on 19 November, 2005 and power point presentations documenting the Haditha engagement. Defense attorneys filed motions to obtain this exculpatory evidence. It was discovered the evidence that Captain Dinsmore turned over to the NCIS was lost, stolen or destroyed…… Imagine that..important evidence, exculpatory evidence…in a criminal investigation being lost, stolen or destroyed while in the care of the NCIS! Thanks to the diligence of Captain Dinsmore in maintaining duplicates, the evidence would later be made part of the Article 32 investigations.

The NCIS is a civilian authority operating within the realm of the Department of the Navy. The NCIS conducts business with absolute impunity, answering only to the Secretary of the Navy. The FBI cannot respond to the unlawful acts perpetrated by NCIS agents unless directed by the SecNav. Civilian investigators have provided clear and concise documents detailing the un-Constitutional behavior of the NCIS in regards to Haditha, Hamandia and the Iron Triangle to the FBI. No action has been taken by the FBI

Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ)

The Code was designed to uphold discipline within the ranks of the military. From it’s inception, the UCMJ was flawed. The writers understood the need for discipline but failed in the need to preserve the Constitutional rights of those accused. The Cox Commission opined that there is “tension between justice and discipline” within the statutes of the UCMJ. The Commission further asserted “As it now exists, if any conviction under the UCMJ were appealable to an appellate court applying the constitutional standards applicable to every other criminal justice system in the United States that conviction almost certainly would be set aside. No criminal justice system with the inherent deficiencies of the UCMJ system would survive a constitutional challenge and be permitted to adjudicate such important issues involving criminal culpability.”

Every member of the armed forces of the United States of America takes an oath to protect and defend the Constitution of the United States. The inherent rights provided by the Constitution are denied them when they enter the clutches of the UCMJ.

The UCMJ is not a court doing justice according to established principles of jurisprudence. The court-martial is regarded as the right hand of the commanding officer to aid him in the maintenance of discipline. The court martial is his agent and he controls it. “The court martial is not a court at all; it is but an agency of military command governed and controlled by the will of the commander.” In the case of Haditha, serious questions have arisen as to the extent to which unlawful command influence fueled the prosecution of Our Haditha Marines. Could the quest for a fourth star cloud the judgment of the Convening Authority? Could the need for a new weapons system allow the slanderous pronouncements of Congressman John Murtha to go unquestioned? Did the administration throw Our Haditha Marines to the wolves in order to distract attention from Abu Ghraib? Did a Time magazine article and the media influence the administration to establish a ‘shadow tribunal’ to influence the persecution of Our Haditha Marines? The Constitution of the United States established protections against these outside influences, the UCMJ is lacking in its ability to regulate them.

On 21 December, 2006 eight Marines were charged with multiple violations of the Law of War involving a firefight in Haditha, Iraq. Seven went to Article 32 hearings to determine whether the UCMJ charges could be substantiated by the evidence. Throughout the course of the Article 32 proceedings, the “evidence” procured by the NCIS was found lacking in substance. Charges were dismissed by General James Mattis in four of the Article 32 hearings. One officer was exonerated in a court-martial. Lt Col Chessani’s charges were dismissed but are currently in the appeals stage. SSgt Wuterich is presently awaiting his day in court. In the case of my son, the General dismissed the charges and declared him ‘innocent’.

The Marine Corps failed my son and his six comrades. General James Mattis failed Our Haditha Marines for allowing the Haditha fiasco to proceed beyond the investigation stage. Lt Col Paul Ware, the presiding judge in the three enlisted Article 32 hearings, was the bastion for justice in the Haditha prosecutions. In the three Article 32 hearings for Sharratt, Tatum and Wuterich, Lt Col Ware recommended to the General the charges be dismissed. Ware’s strongly worded declaration for dismissal in my son’s case drew the ire of the Senior Jag attorney advising General Mattis. Lt Col Riggs criticized Ware for being too stringent in assessing the government’s case against my son. The fact that Lt Col Ware found the Iraqi testimony to be “incredible and unbelievable” did not sit well with Riggs. “The government version is unsupported by independent evidence,” Ware wrote in an 18 page report. “To believe the government version of fasts is to disregard clear and convincing evidence to the contrary.” I can’t help but wonder why General Mattis did not arrive at this same conclusion before allowing the Haditha persecutions to proceed. I truly believe outside pressures clouded the judgment of General James Mattis and coerced him to proceed with these prosecutions.

Throughout the course of the Haditha proceedings I have heard law professors, journalists and various commentators critique the so-called “Haditha massacre.”

None of them can imagine the pain and suffering Our Haditha Marine families had to endure. Knowing that our Marines were innocent yet having to endure their condemnation of our brave sons was almost intolerable. While the government’s case continued to crumble as Marine after Marine was exonerated, it became comical how they retreated from their original stances and became silent. Their silence is almost deafening.

We the families of Our Haditha Marines want to thank the American people for their support of our sons. Prayers were answered and the truth prevailed in Haditha. We understand war is a tragic occurrence. We will continue to pray for the safety of America’s military personnel.

In closing I would like to include an excerpt from a speech given by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1905:

"I wish to preach, not the doctrine of the ignoble ease,

But the doctrine of the strenuous life,

The life of toil and effort, of labor and strife;

To preach the highest form of success which comes,

Not to the man who desires mere easy peace,

But to the man who does not shrink from danger, from hardship, or from bitter toil,

And who out of these wins the splendid ultimate triumph."

God Bless Our Haditha Marines

The Sharratt Family

***UPDATE****

See also, Our Journey, Not Quite Ended, by Darryl R. Sharratt.

John Murtha, Witchfinder General

2008-09-30T08:26:00.005-05:00

now has an consisting of several high-profile Democrats (including Governor Ed Rendell) whose job is to smack down alleged "smears" against Barack by the McCain camp. Guess whose name is on the list of members?

Congressman John Murtha

John Murtha, part of an anti-smear smear campaign? Who would have thought? Do their targets include bloggers?

Come after us, if you dare. We got your Murtha right here, pal.

Leo Adds:

Physician, heal thyself. Jihad Jack needs to come clean with the truth that he willfully and with foresight lied about the Haditha Marines, including Justin Sharratt, in an attempt to enrich himself and his political career.

Truth Squad? Feh.

Defend Our Heroes

2008-09-27T22:29:00.002-05:00

William Russell's Latest Ad:

For more information or to help, go here!

OUR JOURNEY---Not Quite Ended

2008-09-25T23:48:00.004-05:00

When our son, L/Cpl Justin Sharratt, was exonerated of murder charges involving a firefight in Haditha,Iraq our family was finally able to sleep. We set out to piece together our lives and make some sense as to what happened to us. Bringing Justin home seemed to be the medication our family needed. With Gods help and the support of thousands we made it through this dark period in our lives. Our family can now enjoy today, look ahead to tomorrow and plan for the future.

The golf matches between father and son. An occasional fishing trip to Ten Mile Creek and the secret fishing holes. Air-soft contests in which the former Marine out flanks his dad and always wins hands down. Our family has tried to return to normal, but Haditha still haunts us. No matter how hard we try, no matter how much we want to forgive, there are questions we need answered.

We are not seeking revenge, we are not seeking retribution, we are asking for justice. We wanted to put Haditha behind us……..we just wanted to forget and finally end the journey. In a family meeting over a month ago, we, as a family decided the answers needed to be found. It was not an easy decision. Justin still loves the United States Marine Corps. He is proud to have served this country. A Marine for life……

Yesterday, 25 September 2008, through our attorney Noah Geary, Justin has filed a civil lawsuit in Federal Court naming John Murtha as defendant. Our family believes John Murtha has the answers to the majority of our questions. In a recent article on the Defend Our Marines website Retired LtCol Colby Vokey revealed his suspicions that a former NCIS agent on Murtha’s staff leaked classified information on Haditha to the media.

How much did Murtha really know when he appeared on national television on 17 May 2006 when he called our son a “cold blooded murder?” Did his political ambitions influence his statements to the media about the events of Haditha? Did Murtha’s position as Chairman of the Sub-committee on Military Appropriations allow him to influence charging Our Haditha Marines? Did Murtha and SecNav Donald Winter participate in an Undue Command Influence scenario in regards to Haditha? And finally, can John Murtha be allowed to call United States Marines “cold blooded murderers”and not be held accountable for his slander and trashing the Constitutional rights of our son?

We are hoping a court of law will allow us to ask John Murtha these questions. Whatever the outcome of this lawsuit, our family has decided our journey cannot end until we try. I don’t know if these questions would even be allowed, but maybe, just maybe some of our questions will finally be answered.

God Bless Our Haditha Marines

Darryl, Theresa, Jaclyn, former L/Cpl Justin Sharratt

Murtha, the Pork King, continues to try to buy votes with bacon

2008-09-25T21:32:00.007-05:00

From the Johnstown Democrat (note how the J-T avoids the term, "earmarks"):

Local companies in line for defense budget funds
By SHAWN PIATEK
The Tribune-Democrat

Congress on Wednesday passed the fiscal year 2009 Defense Appropriations bill, including at least $80.7 million earmarked for local organizations out of the $487.7 billion budget.

After the bill passed, U.S. Rep. John Murtha announced directed funding to 10 Johnstown-area companies and agencies included in the bill.

[SNIP]

The remaining $36.7 million was spread among nine other Cambria- and Somerset-county companies as follows:

n$10 million is provided for Northrop Grumman Corp. and Conemaugh Health System, both of Johnstown, to continue working on a digital health-care testbed to evaluate electronic health-care technologies in a rural setting.

• $3.2 million is included for MTS Technologies Inc., Johnstown, for the Joint Collaborative Medical Information System. The bill also includes $2.4 million to develop a computerized training tool for recruits that simulates virtual training environments and combat scenarios.

• Kuchera Defense Systems, Windber, will receive $4 million to continue development of Roll-On, Roll-Off reconnaissance technology. The bill also includes $2.5 million for a support facility that will be used for the repair and maintenance of unmanned ground and aerial vehicles.

• $4 million is included for DRS Technologies, Richland Township, to continue upgrading the combat information center consoles on Aegis class Navy ships.

• Gautier Steel, Johnstown, will receive $3.2 million to continue transitioning its capabilities as a Defense Department regional supplier of titanium steel.

• Environmental Systems Research Institute, Johnstown, will receive $3 million to produce highly sophisticated geographic information systems software for the military to map battle terrain more effectively.

• MountainTop Technologies, Johnstown, will receive $2.4 million to develop distance learning modules for Joint Task Force teams.

• $2 million is provided to research improvements to body armor being developed by KDH Defense Systems, Johnstown

But perhaps the pease de resistance of all the earmarked taxpayer dollars that Santa Claus Murtha is O so graciously bestowing upon his fifedom:

Of the directed funds, more than half – $44 million – are targeted for the National Drug Intelligence Center in downtown Johnstown, funding the center for another year and allowing it to grow.

So, Jihad Jack has earmarked 44 million of your taxpayer dollars to a corrupt, redundant, pork-laden vote farm, and is allowing it to grow even more?

The time is nigh when the citizens of Johnstown and the surrounding PA-12 area are going to need to make a stark choice: Will they continue to send to Washington a bloatedly corrupt, twisted version of Santa Claus, who bribes his constituents with their own money, and is more than willing to throw the honor and fortunes of innocent Marines under the bus to further his political ambitions?

Or will they finally refuse to hold their nose at the ballot box and instead send an honorable candidate to Washington, in the form of one Lt. Col. William Russell to represent their interests?

Jihad Jack Murtha: Getting just desserts!

2008-09-25T20:39:00.004-05:00

Veteran Marine Lance Corporal Justin Sharratt, whose father Darryl is an occasional contributor to this blog, is rightfully suing Jack Murtha for the slanderous remarks made in 2006 naming the Haditha Marines "cold blooded" killers; all without reading reports, or without even receiving an official briefing. Sharratt joins Frank Wuterich in suing the pants off the corrupt, opportunistic gasbag.

Murtha has yet to apologize for his slanderous remarks, even though seven of the eight have been acquitted of any charges, and the eighth Marine is now likely being tried just to save the JAGs and Murtha's sorry faces. Numerous calls to his office continue to go unanswered. Murtha continues to redeploy his sorry phat backside to avoid being called to task.

No more. It is time that Murtha answer for his slanderous and traitorous remarks, all for the purposes of his cheap personal political gain.

Congressman Murtha, in the parlance of the Rev. Wright, the chickenzzzzzz have come home to rooost!

Murtha: It's all about the politics.

2008-09-20T08:39:00.003-05:00

And that's all it's ever been about, when it comes to Jack Murtha. John Shadegg quotes Murtha,

Democratic Rep. John Murtha, a Pelosi confidante, went further last week in noting that his party's not above cynical politics: "This is a political month. There's all kinds of things we try to do that will just go away after we leave."

Straight from the jackass' mouth.

What's that sucking sound I hear?

2008-09-11T21:51:00.003-05:00

It's the hope for Murtha's re-election being drawn down the drain, me-thinks. From an email I received:

From Peg Luksik Campaign Manager Bill Russell

Good evening!

Just to let you know how we are doing:

1. We are looking at $2 million dollars raised

2. Our Westmoreland County office is open it's at 638 W. Main St., Mt. Pleasant, PA

3. Our Cambria county office will officially open this Sunday with a ribbon cutting and open house from 4 to 7 PM Feel free to stop by, and spread the word. It's at 401 Franklin St. in Johnstown.

4. We will be covered on NewsMax tomorrow - headline and editorial

5. Our first set of TV commercials, airing the Murtha slander of our Marines, airs in every media market in the district on Friday, Monday and Tuesday , and during the Steeler game on Sunday.

6. We are front page on redstates.com today

7. We are finishing production of our second commerciel, which will begin airing on the web site on Monday.

8. Bill will be on the Bill Bennett radio program tomorrow at 7 AM

Talk to you soon.

Peg

As will I, Peg. I've hung up my main digs and I've decided to dig in here to try to get one of the most, if not the most, corrupt politicians in the modern era get de-throned.

Diana Irey blazed the trail back in 2006, and now Lt. Col. William Russell has raised 2 million dollars from donors across the nation who are sick and tired of seeing fat-cat 'Jihad Jack' Murtha sitting in the cat-bird seat, calling the shots like nothing has happened, leaving in his wake the reputations of a platoon of Marines whose only crime was the non-crime of following Rules of Engagement (ROE) at the town of Haditha, Iraq.

I invite every visitor here at Murtha Must Go to browse our archives for the most comprehensive collection available chronicling Murtha's misdeeds, from Abscam to Haditha and beyond.

There is absolutely no reason for this cockroach to maintain his seat in what should be an honorable institution.

Ladies and Gentlemen, Murtha Must Go!!

On Calling a Spade a Spade

2008-08-24T21:06:00.004-05:00

Amen Terry Everett!

WASHINGTON - Republican Rep. Terry Everett of Alabama unleashed an unusually harsh attack on a House colleague, calling decorated Vietnam War veteran John Murtha, D-Pa., a cut-and-run idiot.

"Don’t talk to me about defense," Everett, who is retiring at the end of this term, said during a radio interview this week. "Cut-and-run John Murtha is in charge of the appropriations committee for defense and he is certainly no friend of the military.

"And don’t talk to me about him being an ex-Marine. Lord, that was 40 years ago. A lot of stuff can happen in 40 years. Thank you for your service as being an ex-Marine but that doesn’t mean you’re (not) an idiot, and he is," Everett said of Murtha.

Of course Murtha was shocked, shocked, I tell you!

Murtha, the House’s biggest recipient of home-state pet projects and a key distributor of them to other lawmakers as chairman of the House Appropriations defense subcommittee, has been a leading critic of the war in Iraq. His spokesman, Matthew Mazonkey, said in a statement that Murtha would not "stoop to that level" by responding to personal attacks.

Not surprising, to tell you the truth. Since the ol' gasbag "Jihad Jack" has still refused to respond to the fact that made personal attacks of his own when he falsely accused some Marines of being cold-blooded killers.

Murtha's spokes-toad added:

"Congressman Murtha’s record of supporting our troops and our veterans speaks for itself," Mazonkey said in a statement. Mazonkey noted that the Democratic-controlled Congress had dramatically increased Veterans Affairs spending and recently passed a new GI Bill that more than doubles college aid for troops and veterans.

Like I've always said about Jihad Jack, he supports our troops like arsonists support firefighters.

Murtha's self-centered, reckless actions literally made life a living hell for Marines whose only crime was following ROE. Not to mention a living hell for their families.

And no apologies. Not. One. Word.

Where are the apologies, Jack Murtha? Where is your resignation, Jack Murtha?

Darryl Sharratt speaks out...

2008-08-05T19:10:00.002-05:00

As you know, Mr. Sharratt, father of accused (and acquitted) Haditha Marine Justin Sharratt, is a contributor on this blog.

In a new ad on behalf of Lt. Col. William Russell, Sharratt spells out the case against Jihad Jack Murtha:

RUSSELL OUTRAISES MURTHA!!!

2008-07-20T17:54:00.003-05:00

William Russell, who has overcome the obstacle of RINO henchmen taking him off of the ballot, has now outraised Jihad Jack Murtha:

Murtha outraised in most recent quarter
By MICHELLE GANASSI
Daily American Staff Writer

Saturday, July 19, 2008 12:05 AM EDT

In April, William Russell's name didn't even appear on the ballot because of a challenge to signatures on his nominating petition.

Three months later, Russell has outraised Rep. John Murtha, D-Johnstown, by $511,000 in the most recent fundraising quarter. The quarter ended on June 30.

While the veteran congressmen still has more than $1.6 million in the bank compared to $918,000 for the Army lieutenant colonel, the money is a much needed boost for the political newcomer's campaign.

“The average American is saying that's enough,” said Peg Luksik, Russell's campaign manager. “Right now they are voting with their pocketbooks. They want to volunteer and keep saying how can I help?”

Russell's campaign has $270,000 in cash on hand and about $242,000 in debt, while Murtha has more than $644,000 and about $3,700 in debt, according to the Federal Election Commission.

Luksik said even she is surprised with the response to Russell's campaign. The majority of his contributions were less than $50 and about 16,000 people made donations, Luksik said. Russell raised $670,000 while Murtha raised $119,000.

“About 73 percent of his donations are less than $50,” she said. “That's pretty amazing. This is truly a grassroots campaign.”

After years of corruption, cronyism, earmarks, and outright betrayal of our servicemen and women, people are getting the message that John P. Murtha no longer deserves a position of public trust. Col. William Russell is one who will restore honor and integrity in representing PA-12 and their values!

From Prosecution to Persecution?

2008-06-19T12:13:00.004-05:00

At what price, saving face?

The Murtha-inspired, media trumped so-called "Haditha Massacre" has had its share of casualties long after the event had transpired. Eight Marines, whose only crime was to follow Rules of Engagement (ROE) and to execute their mission of weeding out terrorist elements in the town of Haditha, have had their reputations and their honor dragged through the mud, not to mention having had the "honor" of treatment that would make Guantanamo detainees look like they're being put up at the Waldorf Astoria in comparison.

On Tuesday, Military Judge Colonel Steven Folsom, USMC made the right decision when he saw through the undue command influence and dismissed all charges against Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani without prejudice.

Said Richard Thompson, resident and Chief Counsel of the Thomas More Law Center, who has been defending Chessani,

“This case has turned into the persecution of one of the Marine’s finest combat commanders. LtCol Chessani devoted his life to the Corps and his Nation. He served three tours of duty in Iraq, away from his wife and children in defense of us all. In their attempt ‘to get’ Chessani, prosecutors granted immunity to seventeen Marines, including one they had charged with murder. Still they failed. Sadly, in the process they have destroyed the career of an outstanding officer. Enough is enough.”

WND just had a story published today that Chessani rightfully planned to sue Congressman John Murtha over his slanderous pronouncement of the Haditha Marines guilt of murder in cold blood. I wouldn't be surprised at all if there is more "undue influence" coming from Murtha to pressure prosecutors to make an example out of Chessani. Murtha, after all, is in charge of defense appropriations in the House and is certainly in a position to exert such influence. Given Murtha's long history of what was, in my opinion, influence peddling in the form of a legion of earmarks and defense contracts, there is in my opinion nothing too low for the King of Pork to resort to save his sorry fat backside from the consequences of his actions.

The military powers that be, along with the politicians that be, know that the Haditha prosecutions will be considered by historians as one of the largest travesties of justice in military history; a time when the interests of politicians and military leaders were put far ahead of the interests of justice itself. Their pitiful attempts to continue to prop up a false set of charges against one of the great military leaders in the Corps as a means of salvaging face serves neither the honor of the military nor the interests of justice.

It is nothing less than reprehensible.

Lots more on the background of this case here, here and here.

Read more on Murtha's role in this travesty here, here, and here.

Haditha Marine prepares to sue Murtha over smear

2008-06-19T08:55:00.002-05:00

From WND:

With most of the eight Marines charged in the Haditha, Iraq, incident now exonerated, the highest-ranking officer among the accused is considering a lawsuit against Democratic Rep. John Murtha, who fueled the case by declaring the men cold-blooded killers.

In an interview with nationally syndicated radio talk host Michael Savage, the lead attorney for Lt. Col. Jeffrey Chessani said he and his client will look into suing Murtha and the Time magazine reporter, Tim McGuirk, who first published the accusations by Iraqi insurgents.

But the attorney, Brian Rooney, said nothing will happen immediately because he wants Chessani, described as a devout Christian and the father of six homeschooled children, completely "out of the woods" legally before any action is taken. The government, through Lt. Col. S.M. Sullivan, today filed a notice that it would appeal the case to the next judicial level.

As WND reported, a military judge at Camp Pendleton in California yesterday dismissed charges that Chessani failed to properly investigate the Nov. 19, 2005 incident in which 24 Iraqi men, women and children were killed.

Rooney, an attorney for the Thomas More Law Center who served a tour of duty in Iraq himself, is urging citizens to tell their representatives in Congress and military officials that they want the case to come to an end.

"At some point you have to have somebody in the chain of command, whether it's civilian or military, saying enough is enough," said Rooney, who served with Chessani in the second battle of Fallujah.
[. . .]

Rooney acknowledged to Savage it's difficult to sue a sitting congressman, but he believes it can be done.

"If he leaves his realm of speaking from the congressman's point of view … then he can be sued for libel and defamation," Rooney said.

The Time magazine story, according to Rooney, was planted by an insurgent propaganda agent. Publishing of the story was soon followed by a May 17, 2006, news conference by Murtha. The congressman announced he had been told by the highest levels of the Marine Corps there was no firefight and Marines "killed innocent civilians in cold blood."

"All the information I get, it comes from the commanders, it comes from people who know what they're talking about," Murtha told reporters at the time.

Murtha's assertions, however, conflicted with results from the military's own investigations. An initial probe by Army Col. G.A. Watt found no indications coalition forces "intentionally targeted, engaged and killed noncombatants." Later, Army Maj. Gen. Aldon Bargewell found no cover-up.

I hope he sues Murtha and wins everything that Murtha has or ever will have. I hope that every dime that Murtha ever makes has to go directly to the Marines he slandered. I hope Murtha winds up living on the street, wearing rags and eating out of garbage cans.

I want this not because Murtha disagrees with me about the war in Iraq but because of what he did to destroy the lives of innocent men who were risking their lives in the service of their country. Murtha lied about the case to the press which influenced the attitude of the press and public against the Marines. This caused the men and their families unnecessary extra pain and distress and provided the enemy with propaganda material to aid in their recruitment efforts and to strengthen their resolve to continue fighting.

Murtha knew this and did not care. He demonstrated depraved indifference both to the lives of the "Haditha Marines" and to the lives of American military personnel still in the combat theater.

Murtha did this not because he actually believed in the Marine's guilt but because he saw some short term political advantage in it. This makes him at best a sociopath and at worst satanically evil and I hope this winds up utterly destroying him.

Cross posted at Hillbilly White Trash.

Name	Total
John P. Murtha (D-Pa)	$2,378,552
Pete Visclosky (D-Ind)	$1,369,298
Jim Moran (D-Va)	$997,348
Norm Dicks (D-Wash)	$536,330
C. W. Bill Young (R-Fla)	$460,750
Rodney Frelinghuysen (R-NJ)	$359,041
Todd Tiahrt (R-Kan)	$351,565
Kay Granger (R-Texas)	$347,450
Hal Rogers (R-Ky)	$249,499
Jack Kingston (R-Ga)	$199,750
Marcy Kaptur (D-Ohio)	$144,300
Allen Boyd (D-Fla)	$143,000
Sanford D. Bishop Jr. (D-Ga)	$93,500
Maurice Hinchey (D-NY)	$80,000
Steven R. Rothman (D-NJ)	$74,000
Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick (D-Mich)	$13,500