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I’m sure at some point in his military service, Murtha was and honorable Marine – at least there is no proof I’ve seen that he wasn’t.

However, upon his transition into politics, he has shown that even a Good Marine can go bad.

His status as an unindicted co-conspirator in Abscam was the beginning. His reputation as being an earmark ‘king’ continued his legacy. When these Marines were accused of wrong-doing, he was one of the first and loudest voices against them. This was before any evidence was reviewed, any statements documented, anything at all.

And his motive when doing so was purely, 100% political. He doesn’t care about any Iraqi’s at Haditha. He doesn’t care about the ‘Honor of the Corps.’ It was an election cycle and he was propping himself up alongside the possible future Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi. He gave an air of legitimacy to the anti-war Dems due to his prior service.

But by speaking out as he did, he had convicted these Marines before it was right to do so.

Now – as one-by-one – these Marines are cleared of wrongdoing, he sits silent. I’m not saying that, in the end, perhaps one or more of these Marines may be held accountable for wrongful actions. But for a sitting US Congressman and former Marine to call these soldiers cold-blooded killers is beyond the pale, out of line, and dishonorable for someone who once wore the Anchor & Globe ensignia.

Murtha was one of a handful of Democrats who built the modern American military during the Reagan years. While The John Kerry and Ted Kennedy’s were voting to kill every major weapons system Reagan/Weinberger proposed, it was Murtha and some southern Democrats who pushed those programs through.

Remember, Reagan had nothing close to a majority in the House at that time and needed 29 Democratic votes to get anything passed. Murtha was a strong advocate both on the Armed Services Committee and the floor for the Reagan buildup.

So what happened? I think he got ambitious and wanted that Majority Leader’s spot. In fact, you might recall that Pelosi wanted to give it to him. But his ABSCAM involvement took care of that.

What that ambition did to him was pitiful; he became just another leftist in the House – even though his politics used to be much more moderately conservative.

If he runs again, he will be vulnerable to a decent GOP candidate. Let’s hope they find one.