Rep. John Murtha at The Huffington Post

Rep. John Murtha, who supported the war in the beginning but thinks it's time to draw down our troops has some thoughts on the situation in Iraq in his article at The Huffington Post:

I am appalled that while manning a traffic checkpoint near Baghdad, three of our valiant soldiers were ambushed, one killed on the spot and two kidnapped, tortured and brutally killed. It is essential that we find the circumstances of their deaths. Why were they in such an isolated situation without additional back-up and who is responsible for these heinous acts?

Despite our most strenuous security efforts in the Baghdad area over the past several days, this area continues to be rocked by violent attacks, kidnapping and murderous acts, frequently aimed at our troops.

I continue to be concerned with the fact that our military men and women fighting in Iraq often tell me that they do not know who the enemy is. They do not know who they can trust; they are concerned that their camps have been infiltrated by Iraqis who are plotting to kill them; one day the Iraqis are smiling and waving at them on the streets, the next day the same people are throwing grenades at them.

Jack Murtha is an ex-Marine the Republicans feel comfortable smearing with the tag: cut and run. This is said knowing full well that President Bush is essentially doing his best to cut and run in January 2009 so he can leave his mess for the next president to clean up. The Marines I know tend to be hard-nosed and can look facts straight in the eye better than most people. Senator Chuck Hagel is right: the time for slogans is over. Saddam Hussein is gone. We can no longer afford a war that has no clear policy and no clear mission and no particular benefit for the American people.