This blog was featured in the Huffington Post on April 14, 2008.   

On Sunday, Secretary Gates appeared on CBS's Face the Nation and said, "Eight provinces in Iraq are already under provincial control, where there are either no coalition forces or they are...not involved in combat."

Iraq is divided into 18 provinces and has an estimated population of 27.5 million people. The U.S. has transferred control of 8 provinces to Iraqi Government control.

While the administration applauds this statistic as "progress being made," they leave out the fact that these 8 provinces have a combined population of only 6.5 million people.

Congressman John P. Murtha is proud to announce the launching of his myspace. To locate his myspace go to: http//www.myspace.com/congressmanmurtha

I have become a well known advocate in the diabetes community. I recently received a letter from a child with Type 1 diabetes thanking me for my efforts in raising awareness and in funding research to find a cure. He wrote a note that I would like to share with you:

As I have stated in the past, as long as U.S. military forces remain in Iraq, the Iraqis will allow our men and women to bear the brunt of all security actions and our forces will be targets. The Iraqi government, security forces and military have to be put on notice that we will redeploy our forces and that they will be responsible for their own country. It,s their country, they need to fight for it, just as we did in the American Revolution and our own Civil War.

The article referenced below outlines exactly what I've been saying over the past two years.   Our military has done everything it can do militarily.   Top military commanders have echoed my view, but instead of addressing these issues, the Bush administration contorts the debate with name-calling attacks.

The President, Vice President, Secretaries of Defense and State have been blitzing the media lately in attempts to shore up support for the War in Iraq.   They assert that today,s wars must be fought with the same fervor and intensity as when we fought Nazism during WWII and then Communism until its celebrated fall.  

I find it hypocritical and ironic that Secretary Rumsfeld and President Bush, in their latest speeches to spin the war in Iraq, both commented that "many still have not learned history lessons," as they drew inflammatory parallels between Nazism and today,s war in Iraq designed only to provoke unreasonable fear in the hearts of Americans.

The Bush policy in Iraq has been one plagued with surprises, errors and inaction- resulting in the quagmire we are faced with in Iraq today. Bush and his policy makers are to blame for this quagmire yet he refuses to hold those responsible accountable. With all the money and loss of lives we are expending in Iraq today and with the amount of money we spend on Intelligence (ours is more than all countries put together), we can no longer afford surprises. America wants accountability and a new direction. Rosy scenarios and political slogans are not solutions to the quagmire the Bush Administration has created in Iraq. Even as the situation continues to deteriorate, with the last month being the bloodiest in terms of overall lives lost, Bush refuses to act to hold accountable those responsible for the failed policies in Iraq and refuses to change direction. The Iraq War is the number one concern of American citizens today. Inaction is no solution.