1980...

What were you doing in 1980?...I was 9 years old and more concerned with my little-league baseball team than anything that was going on in the world. Politics was probably the furthest thing from my mind, although I knew that something profoundly important was happening. Reagan was all the buzz. We had just come through some of the worst managed executive office years in the history of our nation (Thanks to Jimmy Carter), but all of that was about to dramatically change...I was fortunate to grow up in this nation under that watch of Ronald Wilson Reagan, one of the greatest leaders God ever gave man. For the next 8 years of my life, I witnessed some truly historic moments. From the drastic drops in interest rates to the Cold War ending and the Berlin Wall coming down, change was here, and for the better. It was such a comforting time. I felt very proud to be an American. I was spoiled to have grown up in such an economically sound time. I knew Reagan would take care of us.



So, imagine my surprise, when I began searching for material related to Rep. John P. Murtha (D-PA), to find 1980 mentioned. John Murtha has served Pennsylvania's 12th congressional district since 1974. What could have happened six short years after taking office that would be in any way related to the current scandals and corruption that Rep. Murtha is seemingly involved in today?...I was young, so this could have easily slipped by me without being noticed. I'll wager that it got by a lot of you too...I'm talking about Abscam...Never heard of it?...I hadn't either. It was a sting operation led by the FBI, involving operatives posing as Saudi Arabian nationals, who were supposedly trying to bribe their way past immigration laws to access the United States. Rep. Murtha met with the impostors and was offered $50,000 for his help. He was video taped in his response saying, "I'm not interested...at this point. If we do business for a while, maybe I'll be interested, maybe I won't"...His response came immediately after he had mentioned the names of businesses and banks where their money could be legally "invested"...His taped statement alone is enough for me to suggest that he be barred from ever holding office again. John Murtha was never charged or convicted of any crime. He testified against two of his colleagues, Frank Thompson (D-NJ) and John Murphy (D-NY), who were both video taped stuffing their trousers with cash.


Well, that's John Murtha's story from 1980...The world was so taken with the election and the "changing of the guard" that I'll wager few remember the scandal. In fact, I'll wager few in Pennsylvania remember it. Fast forward to today and the same pattern of corruption seems to be emerging yet once again. The citizens of Pennsylvania have elected Murtha 18 times. So, I would be remiss if I didn't at least place the blame squarely where it should be. Pennsylvania voters are to blame for this debacle. Surely, other avenues of action could have been taken, but the ultimate blame falls to Pennsylvania citizens for allowing him to remain in office all these years.




Take, for instance, The John Murtha Johnstown-Cambria County Airport. The airport was founded in 1950, but the airport has received more than $200 million in taxpayer funding in the past decade, due in large part to John Murtha (The King of Pork)...In fact, the airport was one of the first airports in the country to receive stimulus package money, totaling more than $800,000, to pave a "back-up" runway. Most recently, however, a federal grand jury subpoenaed documents from Rep. Pete Visciosky (D-Ind) and his campaign committees. The investigation names the PMA Group, a lobbying firm that has since dissolved, that specialized in securing federal contracts for the Department of Defense from Rep. Visciosky and from Rep. Murtha. One would have to wonder if subsequent subpoenas will follow...

This is one conservative blogger who hopes the 12th District thinks long and hard before offering John P. Murtha a 19th term. His efforts to secure hundreds of millions of dollars for scandal-ridden companies, shady businessmen, and a little needed airport that bares his name have little to do with helping the citizens of Pennsylvania but a lot to do with lining HIS pockets. On April 27, 2009, Conservative businessman Tim Burns announced he would be running against John Murtha...I hope he wins and wins BIG!!...http://www.timburnsforcongress.com/html/Meet_Tim_Burns.html

Some material was paraphrased from Associated Press and Wikipedia articles