Murtha--It Just Keeps Getting Slimier & Slimier

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

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"?

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...

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...

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

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

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

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

(h/t Traveller in Time)

Megalomaniacal Murtha

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

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

Murtha: To the Highest Bidder?

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

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?

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...

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?

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

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

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..

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

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!

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!!