Pennsylvania Rep John P. “Jack” Murtha Dead at 77
John Patrick “Jack” Murtha, Democratic Rep for Pennsylvania’s 12th congressional district since 1974, died Monday from gallbladder surgery complications at Virgina Hospital Center.
“Congressman John P. Murtha (PA-12) passed away peacefully this afternoon at 1:18 p.m. at Virginia Hospital Center in Arlington, Va. At his bedside was his family,” read a statement from his office.
An outspoken presence in the House for 35 years, Murtha was one of the targets of the FBI ABSCAM corruption sting in the 1970s and early ’80s, that led to the convictions of five members of the House — two of which Murtha agreed to testify against.
Murtha was videotaped during the sting responding to an offer of $50,000 from FBI operatives posing as intermediaries for Saudi nationals hoping to bribe their way through the immigration process. Murtha responded, “I’m not interested…at this point. If we do business for a while, maybe I’ll be interested, maybe I won’t,” right after providing names of businessess and banks in his district where money could be invested legally. The U.S. Attorneys Office reasoned that Murtha’s intent was to obtain investment in his district. Full length viewing of the tape shows Murtha citing prospective investment opportunities that could return “500 or 1000″ miners to work.
In 2006, the congressman was also targeted as one of the 20 most corrupt members of Congress by the Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. The report cited Murtha’s steering of defense appropriations to clients of KSA Consulting, which employed his brother Robert, and the PMA Group, founded by Paul Magliocchetti, a former senior staffer on the Appropriations Committee Subcommittee on Defense.
In March 2009, the Washington Post reported that a Pennsylvania defense research center regularly consulted with two “handlers” close to Murtha while it received nearly $250 million in federal funding via Murtha’s earmarks. The center then channeled a significant portion of the funding to companies that were among Murtha’s campaign supporters.
William Russell, Murtha’s GOP opponent in the 2008 election, who was planning to challenge him again in November, asked in a statement Monday that people pray for the Murtha family and said his campaign would suspend activity for a few days.
“Regardless of your political position, you always knew Jack had an immense love and loyalty to his family and the residents of the 12th Congressional District,” said Russell.
Funeral arrangements have not been announced.
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