"Welcome Back Jack"

That is what his supporters were shouting after Rep John Murtha won relection this week.

Full disclosure up front. I was born in Johnstown, PA, Eighth Ward. The center of John Murtha country. Funnily enough I now live in another mill city, one where the mills have all been shuttered and where the work of a key Congressman helped to arrest the slide toward economic disaster.

But, that said, I am still not sure why Representative John Murtha won re-election. When we talk Rep John Murtha we are talking about a man who dismisses his constituents as red-necks and racists. He falsely and publically accused US Marines of murder in Iraq. He is the king of pork in the US House of Representatives (the US Senate is a whole different country in that regard). When we say pork we mean "earmarks." Those little additions to the US budget that slip in when no one is looking and often in the final report, written by staffers after the bill has been passed.

The Office of Management and Budget estimates the 2008 Earmarks at only $16.5 Billion Dollars. Not a large sum by some budget line items, but still, more than half the Commonwealth's budget for this year. Defense was the favorite place to hide earmarks--2,087 for $6,644,746,000 (as in billion). A lot of that went to Johnstown and Rep Murtha's favorite company, Concurrent Technologies Corporation. One web site estimates that Rep Murtha pulled in $166 million for Fiscal Year 2008.

Some earmarks were very small, but there were a total of 11,524 of them in the budget. The Department of State had only four, for a total of $23,012,000 of your money. Now I see the value to Earmarks. Earmarks have been a Congressional tradition for a long time. They are a way for Congress to help the "little guy." The problem is that Earmarks now look like a good idea run amok. One is almost reminded of the Disney Movie "Fantasia" and the Sorcerer's Apprentice.

But, back to the election of John Murtha to an 18th term. It is the surest sign to me that the tide was running for Senator Obama. It was not that the President Elect took Pennsylvania (he did), but that John Murtha is returning for another term in office.

Sure, the challenger, Republican William Russell, just moved to the District, having just this year purchased a house in Upper Yoder. He has recently retired from a long career in the US Army and had probably not lived anywhere very long. It was his decision to move to Cambria County, as it was my decision (or God's Will) for me to move to Lowell. (One of my friends told me the proper phrasing is "I got here as soon as I could").

The good news is that the challenger asserts that he is not going away. I hope he doesn't.

Regards -- Cliff