Former Marine calls the ex-Marine out.
Republican congressional candidate Bill Russell’s rally on Sunday featured several Iraq war veterans vehemently criticizing U.S. Rep. John Murtha (D-Johnstown), who they say betrayed them when he said troops in Iraq killed innocent civilians in Haditha ”in cold blood.”
Those remarks sparked Russell to run against Murtha and have been a theme of his campaign ever since.
During the rally, Shawn Bryan, a former sergeant in the U.S. Marine Corps., said Murtha visited his unit in Iraq in 2005. At the time, Murtha told the troops “what a great job we did,” Bryan said, only to see him tell his district back home he no longer supported the effort.
Bryan said he didn’t put his life on the line for his country “just so some fat little bastard can come back and run his mouth.”
Having been in the same room as Mr. Murtha, I can say that while he’s a big guy physically, he really is a small, little man in every other way.
One can only hope that PA voters will do the right thing.
I was recently in SW PA, and in the area I travelled thru for two days the yard signs and posters were heavily conservative/Republican. Made me feel good.
We’ll know tomorrow.
Had the opportunity to brief and have lunch with Murtha back in 90 or so when I was the J3/J5 of CJTF4 in Key west. He was a pompous ass then and has improved, or gone downhill, with age.
Ex-Marine John Murtha is a fricking POS!
Among the many prayers I’ll be saying tonight, is one for LTC William Russell.
thebronze:
I can almost put up with the “O”one so long as Murtha takes the big dive.
What is it about politics that attracts veterans like Murtha, Kerry, Sestak, etc?
Lord I hope Russell gets the nod. Up in Maine, Charlie Summers is a Navy Officer hoping to make it to Congress. He’s fighting a Lesbian far-left wing dem and right now it doesn’t look good for him. We can hope, though…
Respects,
Once again Lex is on target. Murtha is NOT a fat little bastard. He’s at least 6′2″, which makes him a fat big bastard.
xair- I was thinking the same thing myself…
The stars are in their courses…all’s right with the world…that sh*t-hook, ex-Marine Murtha, will get his tommrow… Best
[...] OK, one more. Neptunus Lex on a race where we’d all like to see an upset. Republican Bill Russell vs. U.S. Rep. JohnMurtha, D-Penn., includes the unkind remark that Murtha, “while he’s a big guy physically, he really is a small, little man in every other way.“ [...]
I despise Murtha as much as any here but this pompous ass was, for more then a decade, the sole, single, solitary sponsor (via earmarks) for a fine bunch of reservists who kept alight the feeble flame of Inshore Undersea Warfare that grew into the Maritime Expeditionary Security Force and deployed repeatedly to provide waterside security during Operations Desert Shield/Storm, Vigilant Warrior, Silent Assurance, Noble Eagle, OIF and countless other security missions during Exercises Bright Star and Cobra Gold plus the odd jobs like Operation Walleye in the JTF4 arena way back in 1990. It just goes to show that one can be a despicable scumbag and still make some contribution.
Geez, Capt, you hit the big time! Jules reads you!
As for Murtha. Godspeed, Bill Russell!
Well, xformed, it’s only fair. After all, Lex reads Jules!
By the way, either early this year or last year, some Marines over at Blackfive officially threw Murtha out of the Corps — and they say, I believe, “once a Marine, always a Marine.” Except for Murtha.
Marianne
Former Eagle Scout, Marine DI, OCS selectee, Vietnam veteran and twice Purple Heart awardee, NRA “A” awardee, co-sponsor (with of all people, Duke Cunningham) of the “Flag Desecration Amendment,” winning 14 elections to the Senate, Murtha is much like the proverbial ‘builder of a thousand bridges’ who makes a stupid (unrelated to bridge-building) mistake that really sucks…. And is only remembered forever for that egregious mistake.
Most here seem to want to remember him for his mistake, rather than a thousand bridges builder.
[And yes, I am aware of some other Murtha controversies such as ABSCAM and earmarks, etc. Still, his personal record on balance is above and beyond most of those I know with contemporary, patriotic histories.]
Yes, he does seem small, traitoriously so.
Fliterman–ABSCAM was no small mistake. Murtha was lucky to skate; he seemed then as crooked as a dog’s hind leg, and that was some 25 years ago. He’s not improved with age. I’m reminded of the line from Evita where Evita complains “They called me a whore”. A sympathetic Spanish admiral says people still called him a sailor although he’d not been to sea in years. Well Murtha is a crooked, if unconvicted, thief and bribe taker. He was then, and he may be now.
I’ll toast the sorry SOB’s departure.
He’s never been elected to the Senate–just the House. And he’s as honorable as most of the denizens of a house of ill repute.
And indeed the way he treats the House of Representatives is as a house of ill repute. He goes there, and whores for earmarks for his district. Bringing home the “bacon” has gotten him elected and re-elected for 28 years–but it’s time for him to go.
Mike,
A representative owes certain duties to his constituency. Among them is the duty to represent their interests in government. To well and faithfully champion one’s constituents and lobby and legislate on their behalf is surely one of the greater obligations of any duly elected representative, isn’t it?
Yes the process has become deeply corrupt over the centuries as both Houses pass rules and obscure most genteelly that the members can be and must be bribed for “proper” representation of their constituents. Murtha is as guilty as sin but he is no more guilty than any House or Senate colleague that parked a few million/billion on earmarks that would provide something of value in return for those campaign donations. For being a whore, Murtha is no more guilty than ANY of his colleagues in either the House or the Senate. For being the kind of scumbag who lies, dissembles, misrepresents and attempts to dishonor the USMC, he earns a special approbation above and beyond the norm accorded to politicians. And, having written that, is it any wonder at all that the best of us no longer run for public office? We tend to shun the heavy burdens imposed by the demand to raise the money necessary to campaign for office and the compromises these demands are sure to invite.
Yeah, he just made one little error. Abscam, cutting a deal to take $50k “later” and having his hiney saved by the end of the investigation. One error.
And, oh yeah, there was Haditha. On which he recently doubled down, telling supporters that the Marine still in legal difficulties, and the seven who have been cleared, were all murderers. Could be maybe more than one error.
And then there was his pair of “Kinsley Gaffes” describing his constituents as “racists” and “rednecks.” Somebody’s keeping a count, right?
And, oh yeah. There’s the earmarks. It looks like his practice is to require a percentage up front.
http://www.americanthinker.com/2005/11/reconstructing_murtha_ii_pork.html
http://www.weeklystandard.com/weblogs/TWSFP/2007/09/another_murtha_boondoggle.asp
And here’s a whole bunch of them:
http://citizensforethics.org/taxonomy/term/793
Hey, but it’s just one little error.
Marianne-
You are correct that the Marines have a saying, “Once a Marine, Always a Marine.” And I normally correct people who refer to me as an “ex-Marine,” as the proper term is “former Marine.”
However, in Murtha’s case, I’m willing to make an exception to both rules.
What a contrast to the post above… One man looms large, the other small in all the ways that count.
All honor due the Murtha who served his country faithfully as a Marine, and for the times he’s managed to do the right thing, but he’s now obviously not the man he was and I give him no honor today.
John Murtha has the same problem as John Kerry. It doesn’t matter what you WERE, if what you ARE doesn’t align with what you WERE.
Both served in the past. Both, in the present, are cheerleaders for a U.S. defeat in Iraq. Makes the past irrelevant.
“And is only remembered forever for that egregious mistake. ”
“Mistake”? That’s hardly true you simplistic partisan mitigator (inserting the word egregious to catch the unwary-cute).
No Flit. Murtha’s “mistakes” are a pattern he started during a time o’war. You would have a better chance with me saying he had been abducted and brainwashed by aliens. Don’t insult us- you know why we despise him…
Stir the turds elsewhere. Regardless of what happens today, if Murtha is out of there by evening it will make the day a success in my eyes.
b2
Murtha is a pork machine par excellence who single-handedly feeds Johnstown and the rest of the district with endless varieties of odd contracts. I have to believe that come close of today the people will vote in their pork-fueled self interest for Murtha. Will be interesting for sure.
flit: while paying all due homage to the distinguished congressman’s accomplishments in being an Eagle Scout and Marine, i mostly now know him for the fact that he is currently a dick.
The point, to my mind, is this: When given a choice to support his fellow Marines or to give a morale boost to our enemies, Murtha chose the latter.
Rather than simply say that he stands by the Marines, that many difficult decisions must be made in seconds and that we should all await the results of the court’s investigation since, after all, the Constitution he and they swore to defend recognizes that a man is innocent until proven beyond a reasonable doubt that he is guilty, Congressman Murtha chose to run to the nearest camera crew and national reporter and claim his fellow marines were cold-blooded killers, and did everything but dance in delight at the thought of it.
Murtha chose to throw his fellow veterans under the bus for a little bit of political clout.
How can anyone ever trust such a man again?
respects,
Hey, Flit:
One Name: Mark Foley. How does that shoe fit? He actually wasn’t even doing anything illegal. The MSM just made it seem that way, ignoring that factor we know as :”aging” (of the pages) in the public discussion.
While I don’t like what he was donig, he was tarred and feathered and run out of the House for that situation.
I’m sure Mark Foley had some accomplishments in his life worthly of praise, but no, we couldn’t hold those up in his defense, nor would the Republicans do so, because they don’t go so much with questionable behavior, like…cold cash.
How about Duke Cuningham? Yep. Republican. Taken care of. Foely: Out of there! Murtha? Still holding his seat. Yep, that’s the Democratic “Fairness Doctrine” in a nutshell.
Basically every Republican in 2006 elections was “associated” with him, with far less of a link than “he lived down the block.”
I had a good friend growing up, made Eagle Scout, athletic scholarship to college locked up, great guy all-around.
Over the summer of our junior years in high school he went from Eagle Scout to felony offender.
Promising kid, I understand he’s laying carpet for a living now and has a family.
I’ve often wanted to seek him out and ask, “So, about that time you sold out your integrity and honor, how’d that work out for ya?”
Can’t bring myself to do it. For one, I know the answer already. And second, even if I’ve not seen him in 20 years and am unlikely to see him again, he was a friend, so no use kicking him when he’s down.
Difference between him and Murtha? Murtha ain’t my friend.
– Max