Frank E. Bovalino – 11/27/05

This page was last updated on December 17, 2005.

Murtha takes stand of courage; Frank E. Bovalino; Beaver County Times; November 27, 2005.

Below is a detailed critique of the letter.

“On Nov. 18, the citizens of the United States found out how far the Republican majority in Washington, D.C., will go to discredit anybody who criticizes their views.”

[RWC] On November 18^th, Republicans called for a vote on immediate withdrawal from Iraq as Mr. Murtha would have us do. The vote was 403-3 against immediate withdrawal.

“Dennis Hastert, the Speaker of the House, accused Jack Murtha, a decorated Marine (Bronze Star, and two purple hearts), of being a coward because of his comments on the failure of this administration to formulate an exit plan in Iraq.”

[RWC] Mr. Hastert didn’t call Mr. Murtha a coward. That’s why Mr. Bovalino didn’t provide a quote. This lie originated in a campaign contribution letter sent by John Kerry.

“The administration’s ‘stay for as long as it takes’ policy is no longer acceptable and an exit plan should be formulated. Criticism by people who have never served in combat, such as George Bush, Dennis Hastert, and Dick Cheney, reflects the closed-minded attitude of this administration and the willingness to sacrifice other parents’ children for their goals.”

[RWC] Translation: If you didn’t serve in combat, you can’t have a valid position with respect to war. If you are a Democrat and oppose a Republican administration and you served in combat, your credibility is unquestionable.

This is the same BS we heard about John Kerry during the 2004 campaign. If you criticized his positions, you were questioning his patriotism. Using this logic, neither FDR nor Eisenhower should have had any input into World War II.

Notice Mr. Bovalino uses the terminology “exit plan” instead of “victory plan.” This tells us where these people are coming from.

“Jack Murtha has always and continues to support the troops and their families and would not suggest any plan of action that would undermine their goal and military effectiveness. The criticism is of the administration’s policies. It’s about time people realized criticism of administrative policies is not criticism of our troops or a knock on freedom.”

[RWC] This is the old “I support the troops but not their mission” crap. Can someone explain to me how a U.S. representative who claims we cannot win – and has these statements repeated over and over on Al-Jazeera to the enemy – is not “undermining their goal and military effectiveness?” Though I’m reasonably sure it was unintentional, Mr. Murtha’s comments gives aid and comfort to the enemy. His comments tell terrorists in Iraq, “Hold out just a little longer and we’ll run away.”

“It takes courage to stand up for what is right, even when it is an unpopular view. Thank you, Jack Murtha.”

[RWC] Does Mr. Bovalino realize what he wrote? He just admitted that cutting and running from Iraq is not popular position.