http://newsmax.com/Headline/US-Obit-Murtha/2010/02/08/id/349308
 
Rep. John Murtha, Iraq War Critic, Dies at 77  
 
 
Ever since I was a young boy, I had two goals in life — I wanted to be a colonel in the Marine Corps and a member of Congress," Murtha wrote in his 2004 book, "From Vietnam to 9/11."
 
Murtha's criticism of the Iraq war intensified in 2006, when he accused Marines of murdering Iraqi civilians "in cold blood" at Haditha, after one Marine died and two were wounded by a roadside bomb.
 
Critics said Murtha unfairly held the Marines responsible before an investigation was concluded and fueled enemy retaliation. He said that the war couldn't be won militarily and that such incidents dimmed the prospect for a political solution.
 
"This is the kind of war you have to win the hearts and minds of the people," Murtha said. "And we're set back every time something like this happens."
 
In 2008, the Republican Party used Murtha's words against him in TV ads aired less than a month before the election. The ads cited his criticism of the Haditha incident, as well as a comment about "racist" voting tendencies of many western Pennsylvania residents. Still, Murtha handily won his 18th full term.
 
Murtha was a perennial target of critics of so-called pay-to-play politics. He routinely drew the attention of ethical watchdogs with off-the-floor activities, from his entanglement in the Abscam corruption probe three decades ago to the more recent scrutiny of the connection between special-interest spending known as earmarks and the raising of cash for campaigns.
 
Murtha defended the practice of earmarking. The money, he said, benefited his constituents.
 
Murtha became chairman of the House Appropriations defense subcommittee in 1989. The same year Paul Magliocchetti, a former subcommittee staffer, left Capitol Hill to found the now-defunct PMA Group. The lobbying firm, which specialized in obtaining earmarks for defense contractors, was one Murtha's biggest sources of campaign cash.
 
In 2007 and 2008, Murtha and two fellow Democrats on the subcommittee directed $137 million to defense contractors who were paying PMA to get them government business. Between 1989 and 2009, Murtha collected more than $2.3 million in campaign contributions from PMA's lobbyists and corporate clients, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, which tracks political money.
 
Shortly after the 2008 election, the FBI raided PMA's offices as part of a criminal investigation. In a separate development in January 2009, FBI agents raided the offices of a defense contractor from Murtha's district — Windber-based Kuchera Defense Systems Inc. — that had received millions of dollars in earmarks sponsored by Murtha while contributing tens of thousands to his campaigns.
 
A year later, Kuchera was suspended from bidding on government contracts because of allegations that it paid more than $200,000 in kickbacks to another defense contractor.
 
Around the same time, the House ethics committee was investigating the link between PMA-related campaign contributions and earmarks, but it had not named a subcommittee to look into possible violations by individual lawmakers.
 
Murtha's critics recall the Abscam corruption probe, in which the FBI caught him on videotape in a 1980 sting operation turning down a $50,000 bribe offer while holding out the possibility that he might take money in the future.
 
"We do business for a while, maybe I'll be interested and maybe I won't," Murtha said on the tape.
 
Six congressmen and one senator were convicted in that case. Murtha was not charged, but the government named him as an unindicted co-conspirator and he testified against two other congressmen.
 
Murtha's district encompasses all or part of nine counties in southwestern Pennsylvania and embodies the region's stereotypes of coal mines, steel mills and blue-collar values.
 
State Sen. Don White, an Army veteran and a Republican who represents a portion of Murtha's district, said he and Murtha were longtime friends, despite holding different political views and serving in different branches of the military.
 
"He made sure that Washington, D.C., knew where Johnstown, Indiana, Kittanning and a lot of other sites in western Pennsylvania were located," White said.
 
Constituents credited him with bringing jobs and health care to the region, delivering hundreds of millions of dollars for local industry, hospitals and tourism. Critics derisively nicknamed Murtha the "king of pork" and said he used his position on the defense subcommittee to win favors.
 
Murtha often delivered Democratic votes to Republican leaders in exchange for the funding of pet projects. He wasn't shy about such deals, once saying that "dealmaking is what Congress is all about."
 
In honor of a GREAT man!!
WE should all pass heath care, He would of wanted us to!!

It was already posted RB, but it quickly wound up in the Bunker.

Last week I told shooterman I Murtha died I would show him the proper respect that he has earned! This was taken from the Newsmax article posting his death. I Thought it was tasteful and truthful  

Quote from Solar Rightwing Extremist on Feb 8^th, 2010, 6:22pm:

Must have been a thread a little over the top maybe we can keep the proper decorum!  

Murtha Enraged Many with Attacks on Haditha Marines  
Monday, 08 Feb 2010 06:33 PM Article Font Size      
By: David A. Patten
 
Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa., who called for an immediate military withdrawal from Iraq in 2005 and who once accused U.S. Marines of killing Iraqi civilians "in cold blood" in Haditha, died Monday afternoon of complications from a gallbladder surgery performed last month.
 
Murtha, the 19-term Democrat who became embroiled in charges of corruption stemming from his leadership of the powerful House Appropriations subcommittee on defense funding, passed away peacefully with family members at his side at Virginia Hospital Center in Arlington, according to a statement released by his office.
 
Murtha, considered one of the most powerful members of Congress and a staunch ally of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, was 77. He was the first Vietnam veteran to serve in Congress.
 
The consummate Beltway insider was well liked on both sides of the aisle.
 
“Today, our nation has lost a decorated veteran and the House of Representatives has lost one of its own," House Minority Leader John Boehner remarked in a statement. "I was saddened to hear of John Murtha’s passing, and my thoughts and prayers are with his friends and loved ones. I also want to express my condolences to Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who valued Congressman Murtha’s advice and friendship. He will be missed.”
 
In a statement, Pelosi said "with the passing of Jack Murtha, America lost a great patriot."
 
President Obama released the following statement: "Michelle and I were deeply saddened today to hear about the passing of Congressman John Murtha. Jack was a devoted husband, a loving father and a steadfast advocate for the people of Pennsylvania for nearly 40 years. His passion for service was born during his decorated career in the United States Marine Corps, and he went on to earn the distinction of being the first Vietnam War combat veteran elected to Congress. Jack's tough-as-nails reputation carried over to Congress, where he became a respected voice on issues of national security. Our thoughts and prayers are with his wife of nearly 55 years, Joyce, their three children, and the entire Murtha family."
 
Murtha had weathered tumultuous developments in recent years. In November 2006, he was defeated by Steny Hoyer for the House Majority Leader job, despite the strong backing he enjoyed from Pelosi.
 
According to the New York Times, Chris Van Hollen, the chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, observed that: “In 2005, Congressman Murtha inspired a new generation by taking up the fight to end the Iraq War.”
 
Throughout his career, Murtha was an unrepentant purveyor of earmarks. He was accused of steering millions in earmarks to campaign donors. He also allegedly transferred $8.2 million in tsunami relief money to a military-equipment company that had ties with a relative's lobbying firm. Heritage Foundation records indicate Murtha sponsored or co-sponsored 25 earmarks valued at over $75 million in last year's $410 billion omnibus spending bill – but that was considered a modest year for him.
 
In recent years, Murtha reportedly obtained millions in earmarks for Penn State University’s Electro-Optical Center (EOC), which then rerouted the money to clients of PMA Group, a military-oriented lobbying firm that had close ties with Murtha. The offices of PMA Group, a political action committee, were raided by the FBI in November 2008. The PAC closed its doors shortly after the raid.
 
PMA Group and its clients – companies like Lockheed Martin, Boeing, and General Dynamics – donated some $2.38 million to Murtha’s campaigns since 1998, according to the nonprofit Center for Responsive Politics.
 
Late last year, the Office of Congressional Ethics recommended that any further investigation of Murtha and four other congressmen related to PMA should be dismissed.
 
Despite his strong support for military appropriations, Murtha in his later years fervently opposed the use of military force. He called for the Bush administration to immediately withdrawal troops from Iraq in 2005, which provoked sharp criticism. Former Sen. John Warner also lambasted Murtha for his allegations that U.S. Marines massacred 24 Iraqi civilians.
 
Murtha said on ABC's This Week program in May 2006 there was "no doubt" that the Marines were guilty, claiming a cover-up of their war crimes went "up the chain of command."
 
One of the Marines, Staff Sgt. Frank Wutterich, filed a defamation suit against Murtha.
 
Among Murtha's unsubstantiated remarks to ABC: “One woman, as I understand it, in talking to officials in the Marine Corps, was kneeling over a child pleading for mercy and they shot her in cold blood. That’s the thing that’s so disturbing. And even more disturbing is the fact that we know that the Iraqis knew about it because they made payments to the Iraqis for accidental deaths or salacious deaths whatever you want to call it. And in addition to that, they had … there has to have been a cover-up of this thing.”
 
The defamation lawsuit was dismissed on the grounds that Murtha was acting in his official capacity when he made the remarks. The U.S. military has dropped its charges against the other Marines, but the charges against Wutterich have not yet been resolved.
 
Murtha Enraged Many with Attacks on Haditha Marines  
Monday, 08 Feb 2010 06:33 PM Article Font Size      
By: David A. Patten
 
http://newsmax.com/Insid