[AmishDude]

He had a long and distinguished 37-year career in the U.S. Marine Corps, retiring from the Marine Corps Reserve as a colonel in 1990;

37 years and he couldn't manage one star? What kind of an idiot is this guy?

[Joe 6-pack]

"37 years and he couldn't manage one star? What kind of an idiot is this guy?"

I'm not a Murtha Apologist, but you have to keep in mind that the USMC is a much smaller service than rest. It's also more streamlined and a lot less top-heavy. When I was at the Army Military Police Officer Advanced Course in 1995, one of my classmates was a Marine Corps MP Captain. I remember a conversation with him, during which he told me (at that time anyways) the highest billet for an MP Officer in the Corps was for a LTC / O5. Even if he was at the top of his profession, as an MP, he was not going to go very far beyond that.

[Willie Green]

37 years and he couldn't manage one star?

Sure he did.
It was a Bronze Star with a Combat "V".