Archive for the ‘John Murtha’ Category
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Not In My Backyard (Or Close Enough) You Don’t
January 21st, 2009
Just when you think a person cannot say or do something more bizarre than they have in the past they surprise you.
Here’s Jack Murtha’s suggestion as to where to house the terrorists imprisoned in Guantanamo Bay:
Rep. Jack Murtha, D-Pa., says he’d be willing to house prisoners from Guantanamo Bay in his congressional district if President Obama makes good on a plan to close the U.S. prison there.
As one of his first acts in office, the president circulated a draft Wednesday that would shut down Guantanamo Bay within a year.
Murtha only has a minimum security prison in his district. But he says he’d have no reservations about holding detainees there in a maximum security prison.
“Sure, I’d take ‘em,” said Murtha, an outspoken critic of the Iraq war. “They’re no more dangerous in my district than in Guantanamo.”
Murtha added that there was “no reason not to put ‘em in prisons in the United States and handle them the way they would handle any other prisoners.”
But that idea disturbs House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio.
“Most communities around America don’t want dangerous terrorists imported into their neighborhoods,” Boehner said in a statement.
“The key question is where do you put these terrorists?” Boehner asked.
Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas, is introducing a bill that outlaws the release of a known terrorist into the U.S. Smith, the ranking Republican on the House Judiciary Committee, said it would be appalling to close Guantanamo.
“If terrorists suddenly get the same rights as citizens, then we’ve turned the world upside down,” Smith said. “We don’t think there should be a limit to their detention as long as they are a clear and present danger.”
House Armed Services Committee Chairman Ike Skelton, D-Mo., had hoped the president would close Guantanamo Bay. But he said he didn’t know how best to handle the prisoners.
“They’re very unsavory,” Skelton said. “I don’t know where you put them.”
[emphasis-mine]
Jack Murtha has accused United States Marines of being cold blooded killers without them receiving due process. He has insulted his own constituents and now believes that my home state is equipped to deal with those who would kill more innocent Americans given even one whit of a chance.
No thanks sir. If you wish to personally take the responsibility of policing these thugs then please go find yourself a piece of ground away from civilization, retire from the House and do so. Requiring civilian guards in an already overcrowded prison system to take on this chore is well beyond the pale.
Are you listening Western Pennsylvania? Please think twice the next time Rep. Murtha is up for re-election.
Cpl. Sharratt Files Suit Against Congressman Murtha
September 25th, 2008
Congressman Murtha might find himself in a bit of legal jeopardy if this suit holds up and moves forward:
A slander lawsuit against Congressman John Murtha is expected to be formally filed in U.S. District Court in Pittsburgh Thursday afternoon.
The litigation stems from a 2005 incident in Iraq and Murtha’s reaction to it.
At that time, a group of Marines were accused of killing innocent Iraqi civilians in a raid in Haditha. Shortly after, Murtha appeared on various news broadcasts and characterized the Marines as cold-blooded killers.
The Marines were later cleared or wrongdoing in the incident.
One of the Marines, 24-year-old Cpl. Justin Sharratt, of western Pennsylvania, is suing Murtha for slander.
Murtha’s comments about the incident have also served as the campaign focus for the man who wants to unseat Murtha in November, retired military officer William Russell.
Russell said, as a career military officer and 911 Pentagon survivor, he has a personal interest in seeing the record and reputations of the Marines cleared. He said a right to justice goes beyond politics. Even so, within the last couple of weeks, Russell’s campaign launched a 60-second ad that focuses solely on Murtha’s widely reported comments of the eight Marines at Haditha as “killing innocent civilians in cold blood.”
Russell said on Thursday he has met with Sharratt and his parents, and said the federal lawsuit has been a long time coming. A legal fund was established when Sharratt was exonerated of the charges.
If there has ever been an important race here in Pennsylvania, this is the one.
I hold no real hope though that Russell can overtake Murtha as the Congressman has both a wide lead in the polls and the support of the state party leaders.
