Is John Murtha Pressuring The Navy Into Getting At Least One Conviction Out Of Haditha Debacle?
Russ Vaughn posits that theory:
Most civilians are unaware of the tremendous pressure members of Congress are able to bring to bear on military commanders. If a particular senator or congressman doesn’t happen to be on a committee or subcommittee with direct oversight over military budgets or affairs, you can bet one of his cronies does. This is particularly true with flag rank Navy officers and generals in the other services because their promotions into these lofty ranks require congressional approval.
By now you must have guessed where this is going. Consider…who is the most powerful person in this situation who stands to not only look like the grandstanding, blowhard fool that he is but could perhaps be threatened with defamation lawsuits by the young Marines whose lives he turned into hell by publicly proclaiming them “cold blooded killers.” Ah yes, that would be the reigning Prince of Pork, John Murtha. Think about it, with a single conviction of any one of the Marines charged, Murtha can claim vindication and use that conviction as an effective defense against any defamation suits from any of the other defendants.
This accusation really shouldn’t be leveled at Murtha without some sort of proof that he is exerting pressure on Marine brass to get a conviction. But then again, I wouldn’t put such a thing past him. It does seem to be about the only plausible explanation for why anyone is still prosecuting this case.
