By Ken Silverstein and Richard Simon, Los Angeles Times (June 2005) [1]
WASHINGTON — When Congress passed the $417-billion Pentagon spending bill last year, Rep. John P. Murtha, the top Democrat on the House defense appropriations subcommittee, boasted about the money he secured to create jobs in his Pennsylvania district.But the bill Murtha helped write also benefited at least 10 companies represented by a lobbying firm where his brother, Robert “Kit” Murtha, is a senior partner, according to disclosure records, interviews and an analysis of the bill by the Los Angeles Times.
Clients of the lobbying firm KSA Consulting — whose top officials also include former congressional aide Carmen V. Scialabba, who worked for Rep. Murtha for 27 years — received a total of $20.8 million from the bill.
Oh, it gets better…
One of the clients, a small Arkansas maker of military vehicles, received $1.7 million, triple its total sales for 2004. Several other clients received money that represented more than half of their annual sales from last year.
KSA directly lobbied the congressman’s office on behalf of seven companies that received money from the bill. And a defense contractor based in Pennsylvania said he hired KSA on the recommendation of a top Murtha aide.
And this is the one that’s fronting the Democrat’s effort against the war?
Forgive me if I’m less than impressed. And why is this not being investigated as a criminal matter? Why is John Murtha not in jail, awaiting trial and conviction? Why are the democrats, who have been so high on the question of “ethics and integrity” when Republicans are involved, not seeking to remove this man from office and arrange for his criminal prosecution?