News of the death of 77-year old Congressman John Murtha, of Pennsylvania, on Monday garnered the usual coverage afforded a high-profile political leader by the news media and the Beltway elites.

Even Republicans fawned over his long record in the House of Representatives. For example, House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) said, “Every person who serves in the military has lost an advocate and a good friend. The House of Representatives has lost one of its own.”

One can only wonder if Rep. Boehner recalls that Murtha publicly called U.S. Marines “cold-blooded murders” during the height of warfare in Iraq.  

It should be remembered that John Murtha never apologized for his allegation that U.S. Marines were guilty of killing Iraqi civilians in cold blood. 

Murtha made the comments in question during a press conference he held, and during his frequent appearances on TV news shows, claiming “Our troops overreacted because of the pressure on them and they killed innocent civilians in cold blood.”  Murtha made his remarks regarding an incident that happened in Haditha, Iraq. 

During a news conference, Rep. Murtha  discussed the incident with reporters as he continued “the Murtha anti-war diatribe,” and said that the U.S. should pull the troops out of Iraq.

He said a Pentagon investigation would ultimately show that the troops in Haditha “overreacted because of the pressure on them and killed innocent civilians in cold blood.” The Marines involved had not been tried yet but were either in a brig at Camp Pendleton Marine Base or resticted to the base pending legal proceedings.

Murtha, who claims close ties to top defense officials as a retired Marine colonel and the top-ranking Democrat, said he had not read the Pentagon report because was basing his information on frequent discussions with “the commanders,” he said, “People that know what they’re talking about.” Murtha did not disclose the names of these commanders or their connection to the incident and subsequent investigation.

Eventually all of the Marines involved were found not guilty, yet Murtha refused to apologize.

Murtha’s position on the Iraq war and his biting comments did much to erase the memories of his ties to the Abscam corruption investigation and the susbsequent allegations of his shenanigans with his brother’s consulting firm. The anti-war leftists — including members of the news media – appear to overlook corruption on the part of their heroes, said one political observer.

Murtha was a holier-than-thou Democrat with ethics concerns. The House Ethics committee was considering investigating Rep. John Murtha for multiple ethics violations. The investigation would have centered on Rep. Murtha’s involvement with his brother’s firm KSA Consulting. The story, which originally ran in the Los Angeles Times on 13 June, surrounds the 2005 appropriations bill that funded $20M to companies for which KSA Consulting lobbied.

Murtha was a leader on the House Defense Appropriations Committee. An aide to Murtha, Carmen Scialabba, also worked for KSA. Also reported by the L.A. Times is that KSA directly lobbied Murtha’s office for funding on behalf of 7 of its clients and that a Murtha aide advised a defense contractor that it needed to retain the services of KSA Consulting.

While his passing is indeed sad, the United States is better off without having John Murtha in the U.S. Congress. God rest his soul.

Debbee sent this in:

(Washington , D.C.) U.S. Congressman Paul C. Broun, M.D. (GA-10) released the following statement after the U.S. House of Representatives voted to increase the debt limit, for the sixth time in three years, to $14,294,000,000,000.

“After Congress’ outrageous spending spree, it comes as no big surprise that the federal government has run out of money.  So you know what the natural response would be, Democrats in Congress decided to bail themselves out.  Rather than following the lead of the American people and cutting back, Democrats have abused the power of the purse by increasing their spending limit,” said Broun. “If the American people cannot afford to go further into debt, neither should the federal government.”

“I have introduced a constitutional amendment requiring a balanced budget that ensures Washington does not spend more money than it brings in.  Congress must now make tough decisions, reign in runaway deficits, and reduce our debt.  The American people are demanding this and we must not let them down,” said Broun.

Jim sent this in:

Christian leaders — including Bill Donohue, Richard Land and Pat Robertson – representing millions of evangelicals, Roman Catholics, and other Christians have sent a letter to leaders in the US House of Representatives today urging immediate passage of tough sanctions on Iran intended to prevent that rogue regime from obtaining nuclear weapons, according to a report submitted to the 14,000-member National Association of Chiefs of Police.

Besides its determination to acquire nuclear weapons, Iran remains one of the world’s leading supporters of terrorism including Tehran’s material support for Hezbollah. 

“Now that super-majorities in the House and Senate have made their support for sanctions known, and now that the Iranian regime has made its increasing defiance clear to the world, the time for Congress to act has arrived,” according to Dr. Richard Land, of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention. The letter urges the House to pass, at a minimum, a cut-off of exports of refined petroleum products, including gasoline, as a firm yet peaceful measure against the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism.

After repeated efforts to persuade Iran to comply with international obligations and the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has recently reported to its member nations that diplomatic efforts with the Iranian regime have come to a “dead end.” Since then, Iranian officials have announced plans to begin building additional nuclear facilities.

The leaders point out that at the onset of his efforts with Iran this spring, President Obama said that “by the end of the year we should have some sense whether or not these discussions are starting to yield significant benefits,” and specifically held out the prospect of sanctions against Tehran “to ensure that Iran understands we are serious.” That deadline is days away, and just as President Obama said, Tehran needs proof we are serious.

The Leaders include Pat Robertson of Christian Broadcasting Network, Richard Land of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, Bill Donohue of the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights, Dr. James Merritt of Cross Pointe Church, Wendy Wright of Concerned Women for America, Gary Bauer of American Values, Tom Minnery of Focus on the Family, and Dr. John Hagee of the Cornerstone Church in San Antonio, and Jordan Sekulow of the American Center for Law and Justice.

The coalition argues that Iran’s nuclear weapons program will destabilize the Middle East, lead to an arms race in a volatile part of the world, and threaten the United States and its allies in Europe.

Jim sent this in:

During his testimony before the US House of Representatives’ Armed Services Committee, Marine General Peter Pace, former President George W. Bush’s Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, asserted that Hamas had joined Hezbullah and Al-Qaeda in the Triple Frontier Zone in Latin America where the borders of Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay converge.

It is there, he stated, that the Islamic terror groups train recruits, gather intelligence on targets, launder money and sell drugs. There is evidence that these terrorists and narco-terrorists will soon migrate north into the United States. General Pace cited terrorism reports indicating terrorist groups are active in Canada and Central-South America.

Apparently, both the George W. Bush and Barack Obama administrations ignored the words of General Pace and other national security experts since neither Commander in Chief took comprehensive steps to bolster border security and attack immigration fraud.

Immigration fraud is a proven method used by criminals and terrorists to gain entry into the United States illegally to carry out their agendas, according to a government report obtained by the National Association of Chiefs of Police.

The Identity and Benefits Fraud Unit, an investigative component of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, is the agency responsible for detecting, deterring, and disrupting the fraudulent schemes used by terrorist and criminal organizations. In just one year, the IBF Unit opened about 4,000 new cases of immigration fraud and received or developed thousands of leads. However, experts believe these cases are only the “tip of the iceberg.”

As the largest investigative arm in the Department of Homeland Security, ICE unites the functions, resources, and legal authorities of several previously fragmented border and security organizations into an integrated homeland security agency focused on investigations and enforcement. 

ICE’s mission is to prevent terrorist and criminal acts by targeting the people, money, and materials that support terrorist and criminal networks. A key tool in committing immigration fraud is the use of fraudulent documents.

These documents can be used to gain illegal entry to the United States, traffic or smuggle aliens, obtain government benefits, or obtain unauthorized employment. ICE investigators target criminal organizations that deal in fraudulent documents, shutting down a key vulnerability in the immigration system.

For example, a recent case in Washington, DC saw ICE agents target four document fraud/counterfeiting operations, seizing over 1,800 false documents, shutting down four document mills, and apprehending 50 illegal aliens.

ICE’s Forensic Documents Laboratory (FDL) is a critical investigative tool in the fight against immigration fraud and counterfeiting. The FDL is the only federal crime lab devoted almost entirely to the forensic examination of documents and offers a full line of analysis and examination services to law enforcement agencies nationwide.

The IBF Unit is leading the fight against immigration fraud through a variety of strategic initiatives. The National Fraud Strategy is the IBF Unit’s key antifraud effort focused on identifying targets and developing criteria for prioritizing cases. The NFS expands the unit’s investigative capabilities with newly established Benefit Fraud Units, task forces, and other strategic enforcement strategies.

The NFS also seeks to detect and shut down vulnerabilities in the immigration system that could be exploited by terrorist and criminal organizations.ICE also participates in the interagency Identity & Benefits Fraud Task Force, which seeks to restore integrity to the immigration process and prevent terrorists and criminals from entering the United States.

The task force brings together the expertise and authorities of several immigration and law enforcement agencies, along with prosecutors, to target immigration fraud by sharing information on fraud cases, developing new leads, and identifying trends in immigration fraud. Participants include ICE, the Department of State, the Department of Labor, the Social Security Administration, the FBI, the IRS, the US Postal Service, US Attorneys’ offices, the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles, and the Fairfax County Police Department.

Operation Integrity is an IBF Unit initiative to restore integrity to the immigration system and to address vulnerabilities in the system that terrorist or criminal organizations could exploit to gain entry to the country. Operation Integrity will support a nationwide system of “IBF Task Forces” to detect, deter, and disrupt criminal and terrorist organizations that attempt to exploit the immigration system, using the full range of ICE’s investigative capabilities to fight IBF fraud.

Unfortunately, the amount of money allocated to these programs is minimal compared to other government activities especially entitlement programs. Some cynics believe that the reason for government stinginess when it comes to immigration enforcement and related activities is the lack of opportunity for politicians to garner pork-barrel cash with such enforcement programs.

Sources: Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, National Association of Chiefs of Police.