Back Talk

Nineteen-term Congressman John "Jack" Murtha died last week. The politically corrupt Associated Press dubbed him a "military advocate" and "one of the greatest patriots ever to serve in Congress." Fellow Democrats chimed in with their various encomiums and dutifully lied through their teeth about their fellow scam artist. I would tend to agree with writer Michelle Malkin's appraisal that "John Murtha was an unrepentant smear merchant and corruptocrat to the bitter end." She identified him not by his first term in Congress when he supported the military but by his last twenty years as "an ego-bloated, big-mouthed lawmaker." Murtha accused U.S. troops of wantonly killing some two dozen civilians, including children, in cold blood. He made these irresponsible accusations before the Marine Corps had even time to do an investigation. He is, however, better known for his many brushes with corruption and his ranking as a leading pork recipient. He was an unindicted co-conspirator in a massive bribery probe in which undercover FBI agents videotaped Murtha solicited a $50,000 bribe. He used his influence to protect a Pennsylvania company convicted of selling military equipment parts illegally to foreign countries. He was several times rated the "most corrupt in Congress."