By SANDRA K. REABUCK
The Tribune-Democrat
September 18, 2007 11:25 pm
—
U.S. Rep. John Murtha, the chairman of the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, has been named one of the most corrupt in Congress by a watchdog group dedicated to holding public officials accountable.
The nonprofit Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington named the Johnstown Democrat in its third annual report issued Wednesday in Washington, D.C.
The group says the 22 members listed were selected because of “their egregious, unethical and possibly illegal activities (as) the most tainted members.’
Murtha, 75, a congressman for 36 years, was chosen because of alleged ethics violations stemming “from abuse of his position on the subcommittee to benefit the lobbying firm of a former long-term staffer and for threatening to block earmarks of other members for political purposes,” the group said.
Murtha, through his spokesman Matthew Mazonkey, declined to comment.
The Associated Press recently said Murtha received more earmarks – money designated for projects in his home district – than anyone else.
Last year, Murtha was a listed as a “dishonorable member” to be watched, but he “moved up this year,” said Melanie Sloan, CREW executive director.
Pushing him up onto the list, Sloan said, was Murtha’s “threatening a House member for criticizing earmarks. That’s a clear violation of House ethics.”
In May, the congressman did not dispute claims he charged across the House floor to confront Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Mich., after Rogers had tried unsuccessfully to strike $23 million Murtha had earmarked for the National Drug Intelligence Center in Johnstown.
Rogers declined to file a formal ethics complaint and a Republican resolution aimed at reprimanding Murtha was killed 219-189, largely along party lines.
CREW, in its report, said that Paul Magliocchetti – the founder of PMA Group – a prominent Washington defense lobbying firm – worked with Murtha as a senior staffer on the defense subcommittee for 10 years.
It and its clients have become major contributors to Murtha’s campaign committee.
In the 2006 campaign cycle, PMA Group and 11 of its clients ranked in the top 20 contributors to Murtha, having made contributions totaling $275,000, the watchdog group said.
In the 2004 and 2002 cycles, PMA and nine of its clients ranked in the top 20, contributing $237,000 and $279,000 respectively in those years.
In turn, PMA’s clients have benefited significantly from Murtha’s earmarks, CREW said.
In the 2006 Defense appropriations bill, PMA clients received at least 60 earmarks totaling $95.1 million.
In this 2008 election cycle, the PMA group and its clients have contributed $106,000 to Murtha’s campaign committee and PAC.
Murtha also came under fire for a $1 million earmark he inserted in the Energy and Water Appropriations bill this year to establish the Center for Instrumental Critical Infrastructure, a subsidiary of Concurrent Technologies Corp. of Richland Township.
CTC itself has received hundreds of millions of dollars in earmarks in recent years, the watchdog group noted.
“Contrary to Rep. Murtha’s claims, the Department of Energy has denied supporting the request for the earmark,” CREW said.
The center is to improve and safeguard the state’s energy pipeline systems. CTC said it would be assisted by Carnegie Mellon University on the project.
The watchdog group said that, since 2002, CTC’s employees and employees’ family members have donated more than $115,000 to Murtha’s political committees and leadership PAC.
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