John Murtha, last of the old Irish Democratic bosses, gravely ill
Posted on Tuesday, February 02, 2010 at 04:17 PM
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Congressman John Murtha of Pennsylvania lies seriously ill in hospital after complications from gall bladder surgery and the last of the old Irish Democratic Party bosses may be on his way out.
Murtha was a 'Tip' O'Neill guy, the type of old style Irish American pol, skilled in the backroom manoeuvres where real power lay. He never looked good under the klieg lights and he would be first to admit he didn't talk, or debate great either. But when there was a job to do John Murtha did it.
It has become fashionable to denigrate such pols today in this allegedly squeaky clean arena, but pols like Murtha got it done. Men like Murtha, 'Tip; O'Neill and Lyndon Johnstone in his day passed some of the most extraordinary civil rights legislation ever created by the U.S. Congress.
Murtha like George Washington Plunkitt believed in 'honest graft' the kind of graft that helped bring jobs to his local district and made sure that the voters returned to thank him every election.
Like making sausage the process was not too pretty but the end result was a much better country. Murtha understood that as a veteran and war hero himself. Let's hope he gets better.
Murtha was a 'Tip' O'Neill guy, the type of old style Irish American pol, skilled in the backroom manoeuvres where real power lay. He never looked good under the klieg lights and he would be first to admit he didn't talk, or debate great either. But when there was a job to do John Murtha did it.
It has become fashionable to denigrate such pols today in this allegedly squeaky clean arena, but pols like Murtha got it done. Men like Murtha, 'Tip; O'Neill and Lyndon Johnstone in his day passed some of the most extraordinary civil rights legislation ever created by the U.S. Congress.
Murtha like George Washington Plunkitt believed in 'honest graft' the kind of graft that helped bring jobs to his local district and made sure that the voters returned to thank him every election.
Like making sausage the process was not too pretty but the end result was a much better country. Murtha understood that as a veteran and war hero himself. Let's hope he gets better.
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Pat Riley | Feb 03, 2010, 09:09 PM EST
AN EXTRA LARGE AMEN!!!TO THE COMMENT BY pflynn70. THIS WEBSITE SHOULD BE NAMED "IRISH LEFT-WING" RATHER THAN IRISH CENTRAL. ONLY SUCH A LIBERAL AS O'DOWD WOULD HAVE PRAISED THAT MEATROLLER MURTHA.
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pflynn70 | Feb 03, 2010, 11:51 AM EST
Murtaugh is a discrace and I'm sorry he's of Irish decent, he's a con man,phoney and corrupt politician butI pray that he recovers.Maybe.
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borefield | Feb 03, 2010, 11:48 AM EST
So like the Democrats, all deals are backroom closed door deals, peppered with dishonesty and graft. I thought our present President ran on a "Transparency Platform", whatever happened?
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registeredD | Feb 03, 2010, 05:42 AM EST
In the words of Allan Grayson
Die Quickly
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jdonovan | Feb 02, 2010, 06:38 PM EST
John Murtha should have stepped down years ago. Honest Graft, you must be jocking. Its corruption plain and simple.
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