The Malfeasance Never Seems to End...

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?

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!:

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!!!

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...

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...

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...

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!

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?"

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...

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

Happy anniversary.

Hey PA-12...

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?

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!!!

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

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?

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.

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

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.

...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.

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.

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.