Posted on 11/20/2005 12:34:27 PM PST by wagglebee
Undaunted by the House of Representatives overwhelming rejection on Friday of a proposal to immediately withdraw troops from Iraq, Rep. John Murtha, D-Penn., told Tim Russert, host of "Meet the Press, Sunday, that the U.S. will be out of Iraq "very quickly.
"Let me predict this, Murtha said. "We're going to be out of there, we're going to be out of there very quickly, and it's going to be close to the plan that I'm presenting right now.
"You think we'll be out of Iraq by the end of 2006? asked Russert.
"I think we'll be out of there; if not completely out of there, we'll be very close to being out of there, said Murtha. "I think we could be out -- yeah, I predict we'll be out of there -- it'll be 2006."
"By Election Day 2006? qualified Russert.
"You -- you have hit it on the head, Murtha replied.
When confronted by Russert of charges that not a sufficient number of Iraqi forces have been ramped up to U.S. fighting standards, Murtha opined:
"They're going to let us do the fighting, as long as we're there, and, until we turn it over to them, they're not going to be up to standard. So I'm convinced that they can take over this battle and we could move our people to the periphery, out of danger.
As to whether Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld should be replaced, Murtha said that such a decision was up to President Bush. Murtha qualified, however, saying:
"Well, I'll put it this way: There have been an awful lot of mistakes made, and I don't know whether it's his fault, but when he forced the military -- now this is what I hear from the military. He forced them to go in with inadequate forces.
As to whether the intelligence provided by the administration was deliberately misleading, Murtha said:
"I wouldn't say that. I don't think any president would mislead the public on the intelligence. They certainly exaggerated, but I don't think they deliberately misled us.
During the Russert interview, Murtha returned more than once to the theme that the idea of a speedy withdrawal was not going away:
"I have never seen such an outpouring in the 32 years I've been in Congress, of support and people with tears in their eyes, people walking along clapping when I'm walking through the halls of Congress, saying something needed to be said. So they're thirsting for a solution to this and the president can't hide behind rhetoric and neither can the vice president.
I'm sick of this ridiculous, kneejerk, unthinking claim. There is NO evidence that we didn't commit sufficient troops to Iraq. This is the MSM and John Kerry talking through you.
Murtha wants it both ways. Haven't you noticed that? Out of one side of his mouth he complains that we didn't commit enough troops to get the job done. Out of the other side of his mouth he complains that the very presence of troops creates and increases terrorism.
The number of insurgents in Iraq is tiny compared to the total population, and most of them are not even Iraqi. There are only a few hot spots that remain smoldering. Most of Iraq is well pacified and has been for some time.
There is plenty of good news to report out of Iraq. It doesn't get reported because it doesn't conform to the MSM and Democratic Party talking points. But unless you're too lazy to try, you can find it. Check the milblogs hosted by people who are there or who have been there.
Of course Murtha isn't he ever the only person who decides spending -- nor was he even when he was Chairman of the committee all those years.
My point is that he has now and has long had the power to do something about spending on our troops. And he has done next to nothing.
He's currently Pelosi's military advisor, for instance. You see all the Defense spending she is forcing through Congress, right?
Nitpick all you want, but that's the truth. Murtha is a hypocrite of the worst kind to pretend otherwise.
Copied from another thread:
You have to understand where Murtha is coming from. Up until 1995, Jack Murtha was an extremely powerful man as the Democrats ruled the world. He chaired committees that controlled the military. Generals would shake in terror when they got a call from Murtha's office.
Now he is in the minority, and the world doesn't stop when Murtha speaks anymore. At age 74, he is starting to realize that he may never again be the capo di capo. That is very frustrating to a man who once wielded such power.
If it takes losing this war to get the Republicans and Bush out, he can somehow rationalize that as being worth the cost. He'll probably even show up when they dedicate the next Wall on the Mall for those who gave it all in vain.
In 1838, a young Abraham Lincoln spoke thus:
"All the armies of Europe, Asia and Africa combined, with all the treasure of the earth (our own excepted) in their military chest; with a Buonaparte for a commander, could not by force, take a drink from the Ohio, or make a track on the Blue Ridge, in a trial of a thousand years."
"At what point then is the approach of danger to be expected? I answer, if it ever reach us, it must spring up amongst us. It cannot come from abroad. If destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of freemen, we must live through all time, or die by suicide."
Wish he were here today to see his prediction come true.
Somehow, I knew not to watch this. Duncan Hunter won the day but they pretend Murtha did. Murtha gave his pitch and the vote went against withdrawal.
If we pullout, we'll be back... paying for the same real-estate WITH interest. Of course, that will be AFTER we suffer a 20-fold 911 of the nuclear persuasion.
I get the whole Dem "pull-out" ploy now. Why don't the Dems just show how big their "guns" are by asserting that all returning troops equals a "PULL-OUT" now!.
What a bunch of desperate creeps are the Dems. They'll be proven WRONG, again. They ain't seen the whole show yet.
The best defense is a good offense...
These Rats are getting sooo predictable!
Senile old coot, should be put away.
He's not my congressman...he's from western PA.
My congressman is the one who was sued by his 27 year-old mistress She had to call police to their DC lovenest because the old goat (64) was choking her. He is married and has daughters her age.
!!!!
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"At what point then is the approach of danger to be expected? I answer, if it ever reach us, it must spring up amongst us. It cannot come from abroad. If destruction be our lot, we must ourselves be its author and finisher. As a nation of freemen, we must live through all time, or die by suicide."
Lincoln knew what to do with Copperheads, too.
Great post, fantastic quote.
Looks like Murtha didn't learn his lesson. Maybe they should hold another vote for this old geezer.
This guy seems like a Cindy SHeehan wanna-be..
In 1972 Nixon was re-elected in one of the most massive landslide elections in U.S. political history, defeating George McGovern and garnering over 60% of the popular vote. He carried 49 of the 50 states, trailing only in Massachusetts.
Richard Nixon
Congressman beats mistress
U.S. Rep. Don Sherwood and the woman who said he beat her throughout their five-year affair settled a lawsuit Tuesday.
The settlement came one day after attorneys for 29-year-old Cynthia Ore of Rockville, Md. withdrew from the case. Ning Ye, a Washington D.C. attorney, replaced the law firm of Regan, Halperin & Long of Washington on Monday.
Ye would not disclose details of the settlement, nor would he comment on the circumstances that led to the dismissal of Ores former attorneys and his hiring.
Im not authorized to make a comment on this, Ye said. I cannot give any details, otherwise I can be sued.
A three-sentence press release issued by Sherwood spokesman Paul Clark said Ore and Sherwood, R-Tunkhannock, have resolved their differences and the lawsuit will be dismissed.
Terms of the settlement are confidential, the statement said. The parties will have no further comment.
Ye would not say if Sherwood agreed to pay money to Ore, but he called it an amicable settlement that is mutually satisfactory.
Some cases you can settle very quickly, he said.
Clark also wouldnt say if theres a payout. He said lawyers on both sides of the case agreed to the statement he released and agreed not to comment further.
He said the fact that the settlement came on Election Day is just a coincidence and wasnt planned. Sherwood is expected to face Democrat Chris Carney of Susquehanna County in the November 2006 election.
Don Sherwood promised us that he would represent our family values in Washington, Carney said in a statement released Tuesday night. While he has settled his lawsuit, he has irrevocably broken his trust with the voters. He has revealed his character, his judgment, and his values. With these revelations, how can the people of Pennsylvania trust Don Sherwood?
I think the dems are terrified of a 2006 "October Surprise" by Bush and the Repubs. Murtha is only laying the groundwork so 6-9 months from now when the first US troops are probably redeployed to Kuwait or shipped home he and the dems can try to claim some credit for it. The truth is the Iraq army is steadedly growing, Joe Biden even begrudgingly admitted this today on Fox, and will be large enough some time next spring or summer so that the first US and coalition troops can start to go home.
"Let me predict this, Murtha said. "We're going to be out of there, we're going to be out of there very quickly, and it's going to be close to the plan that I'm presenting right now.
He's trying to take credit for plans others have devised. He's putting "transiting military" at risk in saying what he is saying, and he is doing all this to salvage his ego and that of the Democratic party.
One needs only special access to certain players and pieces of data to track who is leaving Iraq and when, and who is returning and when.
And he's calling this "his" plan?
Every single mother, father, wife, husband, child, etc., with a loved one serving in Iraq, possibly coming home soon, should consider faxing Murtha's office and telling him to SHUT UP.
We, are not allowed to discuss when our loved ones are coming home; nor, are we allowed to know precisely when. There are security reasons for this. We wait, anxiously, for the phone call telling us "he or she" has "landed" on home turf.
And yet, here is Murtha shooting his mouth off. And putting our loved ones at risk.
Up until this uttering, I saw Murtha's "anti-war pullout" position as simply that of a party-line mandate.
But this utterance of his? Is he faxing and emailing the enemy as to his "great plans" for US Withdrawal"? (When it is NOT a pull-out or withdrawal.).
His utterance, here, begins to sink him into the category of "traitor" in my books.
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