John Murtha’s dead, victim of what sounds like surgical error while he was having his gallbladder removed. Do we miss him? Are we merely glad he left before he got himself indicted? (This blogger thinks he spent as much time being part of the problem as he did being part of the solution, for what it’s worth.)
John Murtha open thread
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3 responses to “John Murtha open thread”
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Murtha voted for cap and trade, health care reform, and financial industry reform. He is thus less part of the problem than every Georgia Republican and at least two Georgia Democrats.
I think it’s a mistake to look at his behavior otherwise as a personal flaw. It should be considered part of the institutional corruption that Congress has as yet refused to check.
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“(This blogger thinks he spent as much time being part of the problem as he did being part of the solution, for what it’s worth.”) So on the whole a rather neutral assessment? Much like many Congresscritters he was busy most of the time trying to get jobs & pork back into his district, and happened to be pretty good at that trick as a senior member of both the delegation & the House (see also: Sen. Byrd, etc.). He’d been there long enough to be an old moss back, but his bravest moment was actually in his later years standing up to the Bushites and their endless wars. Here’s Huff Post’s coverage of same:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/02/08/remembering-the-murthquak_n_454182.html
“Remembering The ‘Murthquake’: When John Murtha Took On The Iraq War
Posted: 02- 8-10 06:09 PM
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The passing of Rep. John Murtha (D-Penn.) on Monday from gall bladder surgery complications brought to an end one of the most dynamic careers of the political generation that emerged from the Vietnam War.
The 77-year-old lawmaker and warrior, who remained an officer in the Marine Reserves for the first eight of his 18 terms in office, was a classic blue-collar Democrat. He was a consistent and effective advocate of local working-class issues, as well as a supporter of gun rights and an opponent of abortion rights. His extraordinary talent for bringing home the pork made him legendary among insiders — and landed him in ethical hot water.
But the Johnstown native forever cemented his legacy during a mid-November afternoon in 2005 when he went public with his skepticism about the course of the Iraq War.
“The war in Iraq is not going as advertised,” he declared in a speech. “It is a flawed policy wrapped in illusion. The American public is way ahead of us. The United States and coalition troops have done all they can in Iraq, but it is time for a change in direction. Our military is suffering. The future of our country is at risk. We can not continue on the present course.” [More @ Link].
So in other words? Probably a good fit for his times, about average for a ‘conservadem’, and certainly brave in his last years by taking on the needless wars. Everything else was pretty secondary, including the whispers of nepotism & corruption. Pretty common stuff, and the rumors of his imminent indictment were always a perennial fav among the chattering classes. But none came despite yes, years of such ‘talk’ (and certain trouble with & by ex-staffers etc). He was certainly our SOB, and I’ll claim him. If he was a Rethug? He’d be getting a state funeral & wall to wall weepy coverage from Fox news. You Betcha! There’s the difference between the party’s. A ‘meh’ over here, a full blown state funeral over there. Believe it. JMP
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Could have let the body get cold first.
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