Peg Luksik & Defeating Murtha

Peg Luksik & Defeating Murtha
Well-said: "When government gives a shekel, it gives a shackle." By Peg Luksik, Johnstown, PA, mother of six children and a former candidate for Governor and Founder of "Mom's House," an alternative to abortion.

"With government coins, comes government control." (Me)

I met Peg in Johnstown at a William Russell function a month ago and found her to be a very impressive person. I believe I disagree with her about John Murtha's stance on the sanctity of life -- and also perhaps on the best way to campaign against him. At some point, I'd like to write more on Mrs. Luksik, with an emphasis on our different views about what's possible in American government and what's not. If you want to know more about her views while she ran for Governor (in 1998), go here.

The best way -- the only way -- to campaign against John Murtha is to attack him -- for his gratuitous comments about the Haditha Marines and the War generally, for his abject failure to "bring home the bacon" to his economically depressed congressional district, and for his total sell-out to lobbyists, most of them living the high life in the Washington Beltway.

It's true that many people in the Johnstown area (Cambria County) look at John Murtha as "a decorated veteran of Viet Nam" and a man who has "brought home the bacon" to the 12th Congressional District.

In fact, there are serious questions -- ones Murtha has never put to rest by providing his medical records -- about his "wounds" (very minor ones) in Viet Nam. Former Democratic congressman Don Bailey has said Murtha told him he basically fabricated his heroism in Viet Nam. (See: http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewPolitics.asp?Page=%5CPolitics%5Carchive%5C200601%5CPOL20060113d.html

In fact, Viet Nam -- like ABSCAM, another less-than-stellar moment for Murtha -- was long ago. Voters in the 12th District, like many across the nation, tend to put a "statute of limitations" on past misdeeds. In 2006, Diana Irey focused her TV campaign mainly on ABSCAM, and it didn't seem to help her that much.

On the other hand, Murtha's exaggerated claims about producing some sort of economic rebirth in the 12th District are absurd. As I've pointed out in a previous column -- with statistics from the Almamac of American Politics and the Bureau of Labor Statistics -- very few people in the 12th have benefited from the huge amounts of federal dollars Murtha has brought in.

The Median Household Income (MHI) in most of the 12th, especially Greene County, is below the MHIs in inner-city districts in Philadelphia and Pittsburgh.

Murtha's failures to energize local economies should be a major issue, as should his self-serving -- and false -- accusations about the "Haditha Marines," one of whom (Justin Sharratt) is in Murtha's District. Did he know that Sharratt lived in Washington County? Frankly, such considerations don't seem to matter to Murtha.He was running for Majority Leader and anti-military remarks helped him with far-Left Democrats like Obey and Waxman.

No matter, I guess, that the remarks energized al Qaida in Iraq. Murtha's comments have cost American lives.

I've written before on John Murtha's shaky stance on issues related to the sanctity of life. Peg Luksik -- mentioned above -- differs with me on this issues. She believes Murtha has taken steps to advance the pro-life cause, and I disagree vigorously. Murtha has endorsed many extremist Democrats, most notably Nancy Pelosi, who favor partial birth abortion and other abominations. If Murtha opposed abortion as a matter of principle, he would not be head cheerleader for Democrats who want nothing done to reduce abortions.

Jack Murtha lives in a world that would be incomprehensible to most 12th District voters, including the Democrats. Here's how author John Brady describes the DC of the past (and present): "Washington was a men's club, basically, where the key to success was building relationships." (From Bad Boy: The Life and Politics of Lee Atwater)

Brady adds, "Washington was also about men making deals, using a smiling face . . . as a front for carrying on with some of the most ruthless behavior in the land." This is a world people like Peg Luksik, Diana Irey, and even William Russell only know from a distance. John Murtha? He's one of the one men who created that world.

Political guru Lee Atwater (who also knew the world of "ruthless behavior") was an expert on defeating Democrats in districts that were staunchly Democratic. (He was talking about the South in early 1970s, but his remarks apply to Murtha's district.)

Atwater said, "Republicans in the South [in 1970] could not win elections by talking about issues. You had to make the case that the other candidate was a bad guy."

Precisely. You can's defeat Murtha by saying that he's basically "a good guy who's somehow gone astray." Frankly, if he was a 'good guy," which he's not, he'd deserve to be re-elected until he was carried out feet-first from the House.

Murtha may be a good something, but he's NOT a good man.

Granted, some people in the 12th enjoy living life in a veil of illusion. But many voters are aware that he's a self-aggrandizing bully, and they're the ones a candidate like Russell should be appealing to.

If you read the statistics (economic, voter registration, vote totals) about the 12th carefully, they tell the story of how Murtha can be defeated. You'll hear more about those statistics in the days ahead.

The critical moments for Lt. Col. William Russell will occur in the coming winter and spring. He will need to raise enough money to mobilize supporters and get his message across. If he does those things, he can win.

BLOGGING FOR GREAT REPUBLICAN CANDIDATES

David Wieger's family in North Huntington, PA, has a blue star on its door. Sadly, there will soon be a gold star. David, 28, has died in Iraq.David's mom, Lori Weiger, said today, "If you're against this war, don't tell me. David wanted to be there. David needed to be there."

God bless Lori and the Wieger family.


In the next several days (Sunday through Wednesday), I'll be cleaning up this blog: adding widgets, cleaning up the links, and generally making it a more effective, attractive site. I want this blog to be extremely successful at attracting visitors. One friend of mine, Cindy at ThePinkFlamingo on Blogharbor is getting 5,000-plus hits per day, so I have a way to go!

Any advice on improvements will be received with gratitude.

In the past week, I've either written or borrowed a half-dozen pieces on William "Trower" Russell, who's running hard against John Murtha in PA's 12th Congressional District. I believe I know how to defeat Murtha -- the best way to start is with a wonderful candidate like Russell -- and I'm sharing them as I go along.

I will blog from time-to-time (at least once a week and eventually more than that) at another site where I'm a contributor: http://murthamustgo.blogspot.com. Another contributor there is Mr. Sharratt, father of Justin, who's one of the Marines falsely and maliciously (by Murtha) charged in the Haditha event. John Murtha called the Marines there "cold-blooded killers," a statement he made to curry favor from far-left Democrats, such as Nancy Pelosi.

For people who want to help William Russell, the best thing you can do is to visit his web site: http://williamrussellforcongress.com and do the following: (1) make a small contribution; (2) volunteer in any other way you can to assist in the campaign. As you'll read below, Murtha regularly sells his votes to the highest bidders, and he thus raises million for his campaigns. It will take a dedicated, national effort to overcome him. That kind of effort is very much underway.

My efforts to get Sarah Palin elected as America's first female President will continue. I'll also be support the campaigns of Melissa Hart for Congress in PA's 4th District (where I live) and Heather Wilson for the U.S. Senate in New Mexico. I'll be adding some other candidates within the next two months. Please make recommendations if you have a favorite candidate who's scrupulously honest and deeply patriotic. Because John McCain fits that definition, I'm adding some material for him.

One of "my" candidates, Bobby Jindal, has already won the governorship of Louisiana. Congratulations to Bobby!

Thanks to all who have visited this site. Keep coming back, and leave your comments when you wish.

RUSSELL PRESS RELEASE ON HADITHA SAYS: MURTHA, APOLOGIZE NOW!

Contact: Larry Stiles
Campaign Manager
Phone: (814)243-8662

PO Box 630
Johnstown, PA 15907


William Russell for Congress

“Turning the Tide”

Press Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
RUSSELL RENEWS CALL FOR CONGRESSMAN MURTHA TO PUBLICLY APOLOGIZE TO MARINES

Johnstown, PA – November 2, 2007: Congressional candidate William Russell said, “The time has come to for Congressman Murtha to publicly apologize to Justin Sharratt, the other Haditha Marines, their families, and every single serving Soldier, Sailor, Marine and Airman (and their families) who has served in or is currently serving in the Middle East”.

“At the very least, he must acknowledge that he has slandered the bravest of our young citizens and increased their risks of death and injury as they confront the evil that is Islamic Radicalism”. “He has provided aid and comfort to an enemy that is seeking to impose its version of totalitarian Sharia law on all of the Middle East, as well as Europe and the United States”. “He has undermined the efforts of the United States to stabilize Iraq”.

For those not familiar with him, US Marine Lance Corporal (L/CPL) Justin Sharratt, from Cannonsburg, PA, is an American Hero. On 19 November 2005 at a town called Haditha, Justin’s convoy was attacked. The explosion of an improvised explosive device (IED) killed his friend and squad mate L/CPL Miguel Terrazas. This ambush included not only the bomb but also sniping and rifle fire at the Marines as they secured and evacuated the wounded out of the vehicle in which L/CPL Terrazas had been killed.

L/CPL Sharratt assisted in the security, recovery and offensive efforts to capture or kill the enemy combatants who initiated the complex ambush. When he moved into a building with some of his squad mates, L/CPL found himself in a close fight with four armed insurgents. When his machinegun jammed, he was forced to engage them with his 9mm pistol. Congressman Murtha not only accused him, but stated repeatedly as fact that Justin and his comrades committed “cold-blooded murder” of innocent civilians.

“Justin and the other members of his unit were facing an enemy who fights by a different set of rules in which there is no such thing as atrocities when committed for their cause.” “This enemy hides behind civilians in order to protect themselves and to create propaganda opportunities by accusing Americans of atrocities when innocents are caught in the crossfire, “Russell said. “ The enemy does this because they are seeking to create My Lai type incidents for propaganda use on the Arab street as well as the anti-war movement in the US. Innocents were caught in the cross fire in the heat of combat that day”. “But those who were identified were safe guarded and protected by the Marines”.

“By publicly stating that the US Marines committed murder and denying that there was a firefight and roadside bomb (specifically, the bomb which killed L/CPL Terrazas), Congressman John Murtha endorsed the enemy’s propaganda effort and confirmed in the minds of millions of Arabs, as well as many Americans, that US Marines had committed atrocities against Arab civilians as an extension of US Policy.

”By making such inflammatory statements of guilt against the bravest of Americans when the investigation had just, Congressman Murtha not only denied the Marines the rights that he and his colleagues so adamantly want to bestow on the terrorists at Guantanamo Bay, he helped the enemy fabricate a lie which has done more damage to our efforts in this war than any other politician,” Russell said.

“The lie Mr. Murtha helped the terrorists create has been repeated by Al Qaida and other terrorists organizations for recruiting purposes throughout the Arab World.” “It has also been repeated by Code Pink, KOS, MoveOn.org, and other anti-war elements in their effort to undermine the US efforts in the Middle East”.

Congressional candidate William Russell said, “Mr. Murtha should apologize not only to Justin Sharratt and his family, but to all of the Marines whose lives and professional service has been dragged through the mud because of his accusations and to every single Service Man and Woman and their families for placing them at greater risk by encouraging the enemy to attack them and placing that inkling of doubt in their minds that may lead them to hesitate when engaging the enemy”.

# # #


Larry Stiles, USMC-Vietnam Veteran
Campaign Manager
William Russell for Congress
P.O. Box 630
Johnstown, PA 15907
http://williamrussellforcongress.com
Phone: 814.243.8662

Please volunteer for William Russell for Congress at http://williamrussellforcongress.com