Murtha and the FBI

The American Spectator: Murtha and the FBI: The Director's Cut
For more than 26 years, Congressman John P. "Jack" Murtha (D-Penn.) has not been truthful about his involvement in Abscam, court records and the complete video of his meeting with the FBI show.

"What the FBI undercover surveillance tape makes clear is two-fold: First, that -- contrary to his assertions at the time, and ever since -- it is clear that Jack Murtha believed he had made a deal to accept $50,000 in cash in exchange for helping that Arab oil sheik get into the country with special, private legislation; and, second, that his stated defense for the last 26 years -- that he went to the meeting solely to discuss business investments in the District -- was a fraud at the time, and has been a fraud ever since.

"First, to the matter of the deal itself. Early in the meeting, Jack Murtha designated Howard Criden -- a Philadelphia attorney acting as a middleman -- as his agent, to accept the $50,000 on his behalf. You can see that about 16 minutes into the tape, or find it on page 5 of your transcript, where Mr. Murtha says, 'I'll deal through Howard … eh, uh … in this thing.'

"Leaving a room where one has just been offered $50,000 in cash, only to return two minutes later with a bag man saying 'John says that it is okay for you to give me what's in that drawer,' is not something done by a man who's not aware he's trying to take a bribe. IREY ON ABSCAM