Jon Christian Ryter's Conservative World

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From The Mailbag

John Murtha's Arrogant Pork Barrel Airport

You can't call Congressman John P. Murtha's personal, taxpayer-paid airport a bridge to no where because it has a destination. It flies to and from Washington, DC three times a day—at our expense. This is a state-of-the-art airport that you would imagine, from the look of it, was doing a booming business. An average of 20 people a day fly out of this albatross.

The airport, the John Murtha Johnstown-Cambria County Airport is located in Murtha's hometown of Johnstown, Pennsylvania. Construction costs, funded 100% by you and me, were $39 million. Now, if looking at pork, you might say, "Ah, that's not much." But, Murtha has personally steered over $150 million taxpayer dollars to his personal airport. (Once you build it, you gotta run it and keep the coffee pots full.) The airport was not built because the citizens of that area were crying for an airport. It was build as a convenience to Murtha, so he could live at home and fly into DC each day and, of course, to get home in time for dinner each evening. It's nice we have such a family man in Congress. And, ever-mindful of the need to upgrade such a busy airport, Murtha tapped the stimulus bill with his own personal slab of pork...for another $800,000 to repave an "alternate" runaway (in case they suddenly get busy). Or, maybe the stimulus money is for cots so the airport employees can nap between flights to and from Washington. I wonder if the sound system plays "Hail to the Thief"...whoops..."Hail to the Chief" when Murtha comes home each evening?