When the Washington Post—notorious “bastion of conservatism” that it is—starts using terms like “cynicism” and “alarming ignorance” to describe John Murtha, you know that something “murky” is going on in the man’s head.  (The word “murky” is a tad bit euphemistic, but I’m trying to maintain a certain level of civility here.)  This, indeed, is what has happened.  In an editorial published this past Saturday, WaPo said these things and more about the Democratic representative and apparent has-been from Pennsylvania.

In its editorial (entitled “Not the ‘Real Vote’”) the Post begins:

Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.) has a message for anyone who spent the week following the House of Representatives’ marathon debate on Iraq: You’ve been distracted by a sideshow. ‘We have to be careful that people don’t think this is the vote,’ the 74-year-old congressman said of the House’s 246-182 decision in favor of a resolution disapproving of President Bush’s troop surge. ‘The real vote will come on the legislation we’re putting together.’ That would be Mr. Murtha’s plan to ‘stop the surge’ and ‘force a redeployment’ of U.S. forces from Iraq while ducking the responsibility that should come with such a radical step.  (Emphasis added by Effluent.)

The Post goes on to say that Murtha’s idea of “the real vote” would be on the upcoming $100 billion war appropriations bill, to which the good Congressman would attach language crafted in such a way as to “stop the surge by crudely hamstringing the ability of military commanders to deploy troops.”  (Emphasis added.)  Murtha wants to prohibit the redeployment of units that have been at home for less than a year, stop the extension of tours beyond 12 months, and prohibit units from shipping out if they do not train with all of their equipment.  To which the Post editorial responds:

His aim, he made clear, is not to improve readiness but to ‘stop the surge.’ So why not straightforwardly strip the money out of the appropriations bill — an action Congress is clearly empowered to take — rather than try to micromanage the Army in a way that may be unconstitutional? Because, Mr. Murtha said, it will deflect accusations that he is trying to do what he is trying to do. ‘What we are saying will be very hard to find fault with,’ he said.  (Emphasis added.)

Now comes the tasty bit:

Mr. Murtha’s cynicism is matched by an alarming ignorance about conditions in Iraq. He continues to insist that Iraq ‘would be more stable with us out of there,’ in spite of the consensus of U.S. intelligence agencies that early withdrawal would produce ‘massive civilian casualties.’ He says he wants to force the administration to ‘bulldoze’ the Abu Ghraib prison, even though it was emptied of prisoners and turned over to the Iraqi government last year. He wants to ‘get our troops out of the Green Zone’ because ‘they are living in Saddam Hussein’s palace’; could he be unaware that the zone’s primary occupants are the Iraqi government and the U.S. Embassy?
[…]
It would be nice to believe that Mr. Murtha does not represent the mainstream of the Democratic Party or the thinking of its leadership. Yet when asked about Mr. Murtha’s remarks Thursday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) offered her support. Does Ms. Pelosi really believe that the debate she orchestrated this week was not ‘the real vote’? If the answer is yes, she is maneuvering her party in a way that can only do it harm.  (Emphasis added.)

But WaPo’s assault on Murtha didn’t end on Saturday.  Robert Novak picks up the thread this morning with a Post piece entitled “Murtha in Command.”  Describing Murtha’s career in the House as “undistinguished,” Novak bemoans Murtha’s plan to derail the “surge in troops” as being perhaps “the most daring congressional attempt to micromanage ongoing armed hostilities since the Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War challenged President Abraham Lincoln.”  Says Novak:

Murtha’s plan did not surprise Republicans. They were poised to contend that his proposed amendment to the supplemental appropriations bill would effectively cut off funding for the war, confronting moderate Democrats elected after promising voters they would support the troops. But the Senate rule requiring 60 votes to end debate, which prevented final passage of the nonbinding resolution rejecting the troop surge, would not affect Murtha’s plan because appropriations have to be passed and cannot be filibustered. Thus, unless there is an unexpected retreat by Democrats, Murtha will be driving U.S. policy. That is an improbable elevation for a House member best known until now as a purveyor of pork.  (Emphasis added.)

There’s been a good deal of howling in conservative and military blogs these past few days about the so-called “nonbinding resolution.”  But this God-awful “second step” that Jack Murtha is brewing in the House is much more the dangerous thing.  Sure, the nonbinding resolution stands to injure troop morale and embolden insurgents and militants in Iraq.  But to actually hamstring military commanders by manipulating technicalities that have to do with such arcana as military Tables of Organization and Equipment, not to mention the training schedules of units and individual soldiers bound for Iraq, is a hideously cynical pursuit that can result in no less than the death or mutilation of hundreds of additional American soldiers and Marines.  Does Mr. Murtha think that the forces already in country can somehow be magically “beamed” out of Iraq like Captain Kirk from the Enterprise?  Does he not realize that withdrawal is a necessarily slow procedure, in which certain unfortunate units would be required to act in a “rear guard” function as others redeploy?  Does he not understand that the beginning of such a withdrawal would almost certainly signal the beginning of a terrible resurgence in the violent pursuits of Iraqi militants of all colors?

Does he not realize that this “second step” of his amounts to nothing less than a death warrant for hundreds of U.S. troops and Iraqi civilians alike?

Yes.  Mr. Murtha is increasingly out of touch.  And dangerous….

Technorati Tags: conservatism, cynicism, alarming ignorance, John Murtha, editorial, Democratic, representative, has-been, Pennsylvania, real vote, $100 billion war appropriations bill, Congressman, attach language, stop the surge, hamstring, military commanders, deploy troops, prohibit the redeployment, units, extension of tours, shipping out, train, equipment, Robert Novak, Murtha in Command, Murtha’s career, undistinguished, congressional attempt, micromanage ongoing armed hostilities, Joint Committee on the Conduct of the War, President Abraham Lincoln, conservative, military blogs, nonbinding resolution, second step, troop morale, embolden insurgents, militants, Iraq, manipulating technicalities, Tables of Organization and Equipment, training schedules, hideously cynical pursuit, death, mutilation, Marines, withdrawal, slow procedure, rear guard, redeploy, resurgence, violent pursuits, Iraqi militants, death warrant, U.S. troops, Iraqi civilians

Bookmark: