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-Lurid Crime Tales-

Murtha-linked Pa. brothers to plead guilty

2013-03-28

[GOOGLE] Two brothers who owned defense contracting businesses that benefited from earmarks obtained by the late U.S. Rep. John Murtha will plead guilty to charging the military $650,000 for parts that were never delivered and paying a kickback to another contractor, a defense attorney said. Ronald and William Kuchera will waive their right to be indicted and plead guilty to charges filed late last week by federal prosecutors, said Ronald Kuchera's lawyer, Stanton Levenson. They're waiting only for U.S. Judge Kim Gibson in Johnstown to set a court date, Levenson said. Murtha, the powerful Democrat who chaired the House Defense appropriations subcommittee, isn't mentioned in the twin four-page criminal informations charging the Kucheras with major fraud against the federal government and conspiracy via two companies they owned, Kuchera Defense Systems Inc. and Kuchera Industries Inc., of Windber.

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-Lurid Crime Tales-

FBI Saw Dark Side of Rep. John Murtha

2011-10-26

[Roll Call] Last week's release of FBI documents finally put in writing what nobody had ever said on the record: The FBI suspected that former Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.) and lobbyists close to him were running a scheme to funnel earmarks to sham companies and nonprofits to benefit the politician's friends and former staffers. Bits and pieces of this story were kicked around for years before Murtha died in February 2010. The Los Angeles Times, Roll Call, the Washington Post and others had documented the odd appearance of earmarks for tiny defense contractors that just happened to open an office in western Pennsylvania and just happened to hire one of the lobbying firms close to Murtha and just happened to begin making campaign donations to Murtha and other Members of Congress close to him. Reporters could do little but assemble the coincidences and couldn't prove there was anything wrong with the bigger picture. But it turns out the FBI was reading the stories and was very interested -- interested enough that the Justice Department had opened a criminal investigation into Murtha and some of the lobbyists in his orbit, a fact that never leaked while Murtha was alive. In part, the probe never leaked precisely because he was alive. The watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington filed a Freedom of Information Act request for Justice Department files on Murtha and other Members of Congress. Its requests have been denied for the living Members on the grounds that they have a right to privacy, CREW Executive Director Melanie Sloan said last week. Murtha's death eliminated the privacy exemption, and the Justice Department handed over a heavily redacted bunch of files to CREW on Oct. 14. The files spell out for the first time a theory of the case that explains what Murtha's cronies may have been up to. In a memo dated June 19, 2009, FBI field agents requested the bureau "open a full public corruption investigation" regarding KSA Consulting, the lobbying firm that employed at various times the Congressman's longtime defense aide Carmen Scialabba and the Congressman's brother, Robert Murtha, widely known as Kit. The FBI field agents concluded that "the relationships between Congressman John Murtha ... and employees and partners of KSA Consulting provide for a potential Honest Services Fraud ... if Congressman Murtha influenced the awarding of contracts to KSA-controlled entities or clients, in exchange for some personal benefit to the Congressman. KSA principals may also have committed Honest Services Fraud by lobbying Murtha to direct earmarks to KSA clients who 'passed-thru' the funds to subcontractor firms that did little actual work and were owned by KSA principles." Neither Murtha nor anybody from KSA was ever charged with a crime, and it is unclear what happened to the investigation. Sure it is. Wondered just exactly who called off the FBI and DoJ...

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-Lurid Crime Tales-

Magliocchetti Case Involving Late Dem Draws Less Coverage Than Abramoff Scandal

2010-08-07

The financial scandal that dogged Rep. John Murtha until his death in February has reached a climatic point following the arrest Thursday of a former aide to the Pennsylvania Democrat. But as the case sparks comparisons to the infamous Jack Abramoff scandal, the story has yet to generate as much attention. Paul Magliocchetti, the owner of a now-closed lobbying firm that represented defense clients, was arrested Thursday on charges of making hundreds of thousands of dollars in illegal campaign contributions. The charges against Magliocchetti, brought in federal court in Alexandria, Va., included making false statements to the Federal Election Commission. But the coverage of Magliocchetti has drawn scant media coverage. By comparison, the Abramoff scandal, which involved Republican lawmakers, captured national attention. Tim Graham, director of media analysis for the Media Research Center, noted that the Washington Post ran a front page story Friday on the Magliocchetti, but he slammed the broadcast news stations and newsweeklies for not offering as much prominent coverage. "They're not going to do anything that would put a Democratic member of Congress on the cover of a magazine," he said. "They run in a pack and the pack isn't mindless. They have a narrative they want and they're going to stick to it." Abramoff was sentenced in 2006 to nearly six years for a fraudulent Florida casino deal and got a four-year sentence in 2008 for conspiring to defraud the U.S., corrupting public officials and defrauding his clients in a separate case. Even Abamoff's release from prison in June has generated more media coverage. Abramoff landed a job at Tov Pizza, a kosher pizzeria in Baltimore soon after his release. Graham said "it's very easy for a partisan media" to largely ignore the Magliocchetti case. "Too difficult. Congressman dead. No one cares," he said. But he added "there's elements that could make a compelling television news story but they just don't want to do it." As part of his plea deal, Abramoff cooperated in a long-running Justice Department investigation that led to the convictions of former Rep. Bob Ney, R-Ohio, former Deputy Interior Secretary J. Steven Griles and several top Capitol Hill aides.

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Home Front: Politix

DCCC pulls out of Hawaii special election

2010-05-11

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee is pulling out of the Hawaii special election for Rep. Neil Abercrombie's (D) seat, effectively handing the seat to the Republicans. In Hawaii? "The DCCC will not be investing additional resources in the (Hawaii) special election," Jennifer Crider, a DCCC spokeswoman, said in a statement. "Local Democrats were unable to work out their differences. The DCCC will save the resources we would have invested in the Hawaii special election this month for the general election in November." The committee concluded there's no way state Sen. Colleen Hanabusa and former Rep. Ed Case (Hawaii) can split the Democratic vote and still defeat Honolulu City Councilman Charles Djou (R). The committee spent more than $300,000 in the Hawaii race, according to a source. The National Republican Congressional Committee said the DCCC's involvement revealed a local party "in disarray." "The DCCC is giving up in a district as blue as this one due to their own blunders and a fed-up constituency that rejected their reckless agenda of higher taxes, negligent spending and government takeovers,"Joanna Burgos, an NRCC spokeswoman, said in a statement. President Barack Obama won the district with 70 percent in 2008. Hanabusa has been in third place in most polls of the three-way contest. National Democrats were sending the message to step aside through Sen. Daniel Inouye (D-Hawaii) and his staff, according to the Honolulu Advertiser. But the Hanabusa camp seemed to hint she was staying in the race to help her chances in November. A local strategist close to Hanabusa told the paper the campaign has heard the message to step aside for the interest of the party. "It has not fallen on deaf ears," the strategist said. "But we understand our community better than anybody and, come November, there will be a Democrat there." The special election is Saturday, May 22nd, and is a winner-take-all-format. Abercrombie resigned his seat to run for governor. Democrats had been on a winning streak when it came to special elections. Now, the party can concentrate on next Tuesday's special election for former Rep. John Murtha's (D-Pa.). seat.

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Home Front: Politix

Dick Morris Predicts GOP Landslide

2010-04-18

The man considered one of the premier sculptors of Bill's Clinton's re-election in 1996 predicted Friday night that Republicans would take control of the Senate and the House in mid-term elections this fall. Noting that he keeps reading quotes from GOP leaders such as Republican National Chairman Michael Steele that they are "optimistic" about the elections this fall, Dick Morris told a packed dinner at the Pennsylvania Leadership Council: "I've got news--it's not even going to be close, guys." Fresh from addressing a 4,000-strong Tea Party in Arkansas, Morris--best-selling author, syndicated columnist, and Fox News commentator--held the PLC audience spellbound with his bold predictions. "Republicans will win the Senate with 52 or 53 seats," Morris said without hesitation, "and the House will go Republican by 10 to 20 seats." The former Clinton strategist-turned-Republican pointed out that it will take a minimum of 39 seats to change from Democrat to Republican for the GOP to win a majority. Seven of those 39, he predicted, "will come from right here in Pennsylvania--the epicenter of change." Beginning with a Republican pick-up of the Western Pennsylvania seat of the late Democratic Rep. John Murtha in the special election May 18, Morris said that the GOP's gains in the Keystone State would come from unseating Democratic Representatives Kathy Dahlkemper, Jason Altmire, Patrick Murphy, Christopher Carney, and Paul Kanjorski. (Although that ads up to only six, others at the dinner told me Morris came to his figure of a gain of seven by automatically factoring in the likely pickup by GOPer Pat Meehan of the Delaware County district vacated by Senate hopeful Joe Sestak). As to the claims of Altmire (who voted twice against the Obama-backed healthcare bill) that he is a "moderate Democrat," Morris recalled his days as a "moderate Democrat" in the 1990's working with Bill Clinton on issues such as "tough love" welfare reform and cutting the capital gains tax. "Today, the moderate Democrat is as extinct as a do-do," declared Morris, "I am extinct." He said that in the Democratic Party of today, "you are either an Obama-Reid-Pelosi Democrat or you are a Republican. I am a Republican." Morris also quoted Ronald Reagan that "I didn't leave the Democratic Party, the Democratic Party left me." And even if moderate Democrats weren't extinct, he added, "the first vote any of them would cast would be to make Nancy Pelosi speaker, put [California Rep.] Henry Waxman in charge of energy policy, [Mississippi Rep.] Bennie Thompson in charge of homeland security, and [Massachusetts Rep.] Barney Frank in charge of the banking and financial industry. No other vote matters after that one." The leftward drift of the Democratic Party under Obama ("the most liberal President in history," Morris said) and its agenda of "nationalilzing healthcare, cap and trade, and card check" was the reason he felt Republicans would have a banner political year in 2010. In suggesting that clashes between a Republican Congress and Obama could lead to a government shutdown similar to that of 1995, Morris predicted that congressional Republicans would not experience the blame they did 15 years ago. He explained that "people didn't blame President Clinton because he was not trying to raise spending. Everybody knows that Barack Obama has raised spending and will blame him. And we will win."

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Home Front: Politix

Critics Slam Decision to Name Navy Ship for John Murtha

2010-04-15

The Navy's decision to name a ship for the late Rep. John Murtha has outraged some critics who have not forgiven the Pennsylvania Democrat for accusing U.S. Marines of murdering Iraqi civilians "in cold blood" five years ago. The Navy is naming its newest San Antonio-class amphibious transport-dock LPD 26 for Murtha, the powerful chairman of the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee who became an outspoken and influential critic of the Iraq war. Murtha died in February at age 77 after complications from gallbladder surgery. San Antonio-class ships support Marines and can carry roughly 700 troops, their equipment and vehicles. They are usually named after cities; the USS Murtha will be a break from that tradition. The Washington Times denounced the tribute to the powerful congressman, a former Marine Corps officer, in its editorial on Thursday. "This is a slap in the face to every service member who bridled when Murtha publicly accused Marines in Iraq of intentionally killing women and children in cold blood," the editorial reads. The newspaper said the honor shouldn't go to "a political hack whose most successful defensive maneuver was saving his pork-laden earmarks from surprise attacks of fiscal responsibility." Another blogger wrote that it "seems oddly premature" to affix "Murtha's name to a ship while real and continuing issues of ethics violations and abuses of power remain fresh in the collective memory." In February, the House ethics panel cleared Murtha in an investigation of his role in awarding defense contracts to a firm led by a former aide. Murtha served in Korea and received a Bronze Star and two Purple Hearts for his service in Vietnam. In 1974 he became the first Vietnam War combat veteran elected to Congress and went on to serve his Pennsylvania district for 18 terms. But the Navy's decision to honor him has become the focus of controversy because of his criticism of the Iraq war. In 2002, Murtha voted to authorize President George W. Bush to use military force in Iraq, but his growing frustration over the administration's handling of the war prompted him in November 2005 to call for an immediate withdrawal of U.S. troops. His criticism of the Iraq war intensified in 2005, when he accused Marines of murdering Iraqi civilians "in cold blood" in Haditha after a Marine died and two were wounded by a roadside bomb. Charges against six of the Marines have been dropped, and one Marine was acquitted. The last Marine, Staff Sgt. Frank Wuterich, will stand military trial in September on reduced charges of voluntary manslaughter in nine of the 24 deaths and other crimes. Wuterich was originally charged with shooting 17 Iraqi civilians. Critics said Murtha unfairly held the Marines responsible before an investigation was concluded and fueled enemy retaliation. He said that the war couldn't be won militarily and that such incidents dimmed the prospect for a political solution. Murtha, nicknamed "The King of Pork," also faced scrutiny for earmarking federal dollars for projects in his district. While critics object, Navy Secretary Ray Mabus, who announced the tribute, made clear in a statement following Murtha's death in February that the congressman was respected at the Pentagon. "Both in uniform and in the halls of Congress, Chairman Murtha dedicated his life to serving his country both in the Marine Corps and Congress. His unwavering support of our sailors and Marines, and in particular our wounded warriors, was well known and deeply appreciated," Mabus said. A senior Republican congressional aide told FoxNews.com that it's doubtful much criticism will emerge from Capitol Hill. "In the past, whenever the Navy decides to name a ship after someone, especially a former member of Congress, generally there's not that much pushback," the aide said.

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-Short Attention Span Theater-

USS John Murtha, LPD-26 - A Jonah Ship

2010-04-14

The Navy's 10th San Antonio-class amphibious transport dock will be named for Rep. John Murtha, the long-serving Pennsylvania Democrat who chaired the powerful House appropriations defense subcommittee before he died in February. According to a Navy memorandum obtained by Navy Times, Navy Secretary Ray Mabus notified Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Gary Roughead that he had selected “John P. Murtha' for the previously unnamed LPD 26. It's the latest example of the Navy breaking a convention for naming its warships; the previous ships in the San Antonio class have been named for American cities. I think I just threw up in my mouth a little bit.

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Home Front: Politix

Breaking - House Appropriations And Defense Committies Ban For-Profit Earmarks

2010-03-10

The powerful House Appropriations Committee announced Wednesday it will no longer approve earmarks directed at for-profit companies. Chairman Dave Obey (D-Wis.) and newly appointed defense appropriations subcommittee Chairman Norm Dicks (D-Wash.) made their ruling less than an hour after House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-Ohio) asked that House Republicans meet to take up a unilateral moratorium on earmark spending. In a statement Obey said that "these new policies are not intended to be a one-year experiment. They are intended to be a long-term proposition." A number of Democrats and Republicans have undertaken efforts to rein in so-called "pork barrel" spending in recent days, sparking a battle between the parties over who can best reform the earmark process. Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has lobbied members of her party in recent days to impose a moratorium on earmarks in order to get out in front of Republicans on the issue. Republicans discussed enacting a ban in the last Congress, but a vote never materialized. That the Appropriations Committee decided to bar for-profit earmarks signals that Democrats are looking to make a splash with their effort. Without harming the 'community organizations' that are vital to their re-election hopes ... Dicks' successor atop the defense appropriations subcommittee, the late Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.), was known for handing out millions of dollars in earmarks to defense contractors to create projects in his district. Murtha's propensity to dole out cash for his district sparked several probes by the ethics committee and federal prosecutors. Government watchdogs have for years decried the use of earmarks, saying that they are wasteful and cause corruption. Several lawmakers have pushed for reform for several years, but spending has ballooned under both Republican and Democratic Congresses. Obey and Dicks claim that 1,000 earmark requests would have been turned down last year if the rule was in place on their panel. The ruling also requires agencies to audit at least 5 percent of non-profit earmarks. They also announced the creation of a program that allow companies that don't have connections to the Pentagon to present their products to Defense Department officials. In a release, the two Democrats also touted earmark reforms enacted by Democrats in 2007 and 2009 related to earmark disclosure. But earmark disclosure reforms pushed by the Obama administration has not reduced the amount of spending, according to a recent report by Taxpayers for Common Sense. Two Republicans have taken up the issue in addition to Boehner. Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.) has indicated he will force a vote on a one-year moratorium on earmarks when the Senate takes up its extenders bill, which is expected to happen Wednesday. Rep. Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.) is planning to offer a privileged resolution on the House floor requesting better guidance from the ethics committee on taking campaign contributions from companies that accept earmarks. Republicans have argued that Democratic proposals won't go far enough in cutting earmarks. In a statement, Flake praised the committee's move but said more is needed. "Banning earmarks to private companies leaves untouched the millions of dollars wasted every year by earmarks, but it is a good first step in addressing the corruption that stems from the practice," he said. "I hope that Republicans take these restrictions a step further and impose a moratorium on all earmarks this year."

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Home Front: Politix

Pelosi Eulogizes Murtha at Funeral

2010-02-17

U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi eulogized Rep. John Murtha at his Pennsylvania funeral as a friend to men and women in the military, heading up a large congressional delegation that the speaker said had been planning earlier this month to celebrate his tenure in Congress. U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi eulogized Rep. John Murtha at his Pennsylvania funeral as a friend to men and women in the military, heading up a large congressional delegation that the speaker said had been planning earlier this month to celebrate his tenure in Congress. "On Saturday February 6th, (Murtha) became the longest-serving member of Congress from Pennsylvania ever to serve.They were planning a celebration. Today, they presented him to us for celebration of his life," she said. Murtha was chairman of the House appropriations defense subcommittee. Pelosi spoke at Tuesday's service and says Murtha's vocal opposition to the Iraq war in 2005 taught people "to make a difference between the war and the warrior." Murtha died Feb. 8 at age 77 after an infection developed in his small intestine following gallbladder surgery. He was the first Vietnam War vet to join Congress after taking control of the seat in Pennsylvania's 12th District in 1974.

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Home Front: Politix

Support builds for Murtha's wife to take U.S. House seat

2010-02-15

Among possible candidates to replace Rep. John Murtha, the Johnstown Democrat who died Monday, is his wife, Joyce. "While people have been mindful that this is a difficult time for the family, many have called to suggest Joyce as the perfect person to hold her husband's seat," Murtha spokesman Matthew Mazonkey said. Murtha represented Pennsylvania's 12th Congressional District. His term expires at the end of this year. Gov. Ed Rendell will decide when to conduct a special election for Murtha's seat. He told reporters he is leaning toward the May 18 primary to keep costs down. The state Democratic and Republican parties each would choose a nominee. Independent candidates also could enter the race.

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-Obits-

John Murtha Dead at 77

2010-02-08

WASHINGTON (AP) - Spokesman for Rep. John Murtha says the Pennsylvania Democrat has died at 77. Pennsylvania Democratic Rep. John Murtha, the first veteran of the Vietnam war and one of the most powerful lawmakers in Congress, died Wednesday morning at Virginia Hospital Center in Arlington, VA, after complications from gallbladder surgery. Murtha was 77. A native of New Martinsville, W.Va., voters elected first elected Murtha to Congress in a 1974 special election that spelled impending doom for President Nixon and congressional Republicans. That fall, Democrats wrestled away 49 House seats from the GOP, reeling from the scourge of Watergate and a presidency in shambles. Murtha rose to become the chairman of the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee that controls spending for the Pentagon. Chairs of the appropriations subcommittee panels are viewed with such prestige on Capitol Hill that theyre called "cardinals." Thats a nod to Rome because of the eminence these lawmakers hold over spending for their federal fiefdom. Murtha was also the endorsed candidate of House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) to become majority leader when Democrats won control of Congress in 2006. But current House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD) overwhelmingly defeated Murtha by secret ballot in a hard-fought leadership contest. Murtha enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1952 and became a drill instructor at Parris Island. He served in Korea and received a Bronze Star and Two Purple Hearts for his service in Vietnam. He continued to be a member of the Marine Corps Reserves until he resigned as a colonel in 1990. Murtha voted to go to war in Iraq the fall of 2002. But two years later, the Pennsylvania Democrat called for the U.S to withdraw from. Later on the House floor, Rep. Jean Schmidt (R-OH), the newest member of the House at the time, spoke in favor of the war and chided Murtha that "cowards cut and run, Marines never do." Schmidts remarks ignited a firestorm on the House floor as lawmakers rose to Murthas defense. Schmidt later said she didnt know that Murtha was a Marine. She withdrew her comments and apologized. A hint of scandal lingered over much of Murthas career. The FBI named Murtha an "unindicted co-conspirator" in its ABSCAM sting operation in the late 1970s and early '80s. ABSCAM resulted in the conviction of five House members and one senator. The FBI recorded Murtha on videotape declining a $50,000 bribe from federal agents posing as Arab sheiks. But the Congressman did say he could be interested in future dealings. Nicknamed "The King of Pork," Murtha also faced scrutiny for earmarking federal dollars for projects in his district. Numerous news reports lambasted the Congressman for steering money to the John Murtha Johnstown-Cambria County Airport. The facility received $150 million from Washington for upgrades despite limited commercial use. But the airport is also used for military purposes. The Congressman also faced scrutiny for campaign contributions he and other appropriators received from the now defunct PMA lobbying firm. Murtha scored nearly $2.5 million in donations from PMA and its clients over a nearly 20 year period. The feds continue to scrutinize PMA. The Office of Congressional Ethics asked the House Ethics Committee to drop any inquiries into the dealings Murtha had with PMA. Murtha also stirred controversy in the fall of 2008 with President Obama poised to become the first African American president. When asked about Mr. Obamas chances in his Congressional district, Murtha responded that "theres no question western Pennsylvania is a racist area." Even though Murtha won re-election, Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) carried the district over by about 1,000 votes. Despite controversy, Murtha was beloved by his House colleagues for holding court in whats called "Murthas corner" in the rear of the House chamber. During a House vote series, Murtha could often be seen trading information or spinning yarns with fellow lawmakers. He also won the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award and Pennsylvania's two highest honors, the Distinguished Service Medal and the Meritorious Service Medal. Funeral arrangements are incomplete.

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Home Front: Politix

Murtha in ICU Following 'Complications' From Surgery

2010-02-02

Rep. John Murtha has been admitted to an intensive care unit at a Virginia hospital after experiencing "complications" from gall bladder surgery a week ago. A Murtha spokesman told Fox News that Murtha underwent a scheduled laparoscopic surgery to remove his gall bladder, after he was hospitalized in December suffering a gall bladder infection. The 77-year-old Pennsylvania Democrat had the surgery at Bethesda Naval Hospital but was admitted afterward to the Virginia Hospital Center in Arlington. "Complications did arise from the surgery," a Murtha aide said, without elaborating. Aides would not comment on the severity of Murtha's condition.

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