In Your Face, Thugs! Part 2: Murtha Calls Their Bluff
Posted by Phoenix Woman on February 10, 2007
In a followup to MEC’s post on the subject, here’s Black Jack Murtha showing how it’s done:
Meanwhile, Rep. John Murtha, D-Pennsylvania, chairman of the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, said on Thursday that he’s planning hearings this spring on executive and congressional travel on military aircraft.
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Murtha said he’s requested from the Defense Department records on travel and logistics from the past two years. He asked the Defense Department to hand those over within a month.
“Past two years”, eh? Why, why — that’s when the Republicans controlled both Houses as well as the White House.
As a commenter in the Eschaton thread on the subject notes:
From CNN via Media Matters we learn:
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“COSTELLO: So, there’s probably more battle to come. We did wonder how Mr. Hastert used military aircraft. Former members of his staff tell us he used the planes only during the legislative session to fly home and back about 80 times a year — Wolf.”
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So the House was in session 101 days last year and Hastert flew on that plane 80 of those days?
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Can that be right?
Wow. Looks like Dennis Hastert, then-Speaker of the House, who one would think would need to be tethered to his gavel at all times while the House was in session, was instead playing hooky four days out of five.
And do note that Murtha’s planned hearings will cover the Executive Branch as well. You know, all those glorified photo-ops Bush does that are campaign fundraisers in disguise?
Heheheheheheheh.
Charles said
You should have seen Murtha fry Frelinghausen (R-NJ11)for trying to divert a hearing on readiness into a question of whether the troops would be demoralized by a withdrawal from Iraq. He brusquely instructed Gen Schoomaker to be careful how he responded to Frelinghausen’s question because “that will be answered by the chair.”
A decade of Murtha’s oversight and we might actually have a real military, instead of the corporate enterprise posing as one.
MEC said
“Looks like Dennis Hastert, then-Speaker of the House, who one would think would need to be tethered to his gavel at all times while the House was in session, was instead playing hooky four days out of five.”
Do you think — could it be possible — could we even imagine — that Denny was using the plane for reasons other than travel back to his district? Even — dare we whisper it — partisan public appearances?
Charles said
Well, of course, MEC. Remember #11 in Robert’s Rules of Republicans:
“When a Republican accuses a Democrat of a misdeed, he is the one culpable of it.”