Rep. John Murtha (D-PA) is coming under heavy fire from milblogger Uncle Jimbo for disparaging remarks he made three years ago about Marines in Iraq.

From the Politico

Rep. John P. Murtha knows something about taking enemy fire — from his two Purple Hearts in Vietnam to the recent salvos over his ties to lobbyists and defense contractors and the alleged exchange of earmarks for campaign contributions.

But he’s sustaining incoming of a different sort from Uncle Jimbo, aka James Hanson, a former special forces soldier-turned-military blogger who has the Pennsylvania congressman in his cross hairs. Hanson is laying down a barrage of virtual shells, demanding Murtha’s ouster and demonstrating the furor veterans groups and their websites are capable of generating online.

“Few people have turned on their former brothers in arms more egregiously than the Lummox Murtha,” Hanson wrote last year. “His behavior in throwing the Marines accused of a massacre in Haditha straight to the jackals of the press was shameful and disgraceful.”

Like many who have served in the military, Hanson’s anti-Murtha outrage grew from comments the chairman of the House Appropriations Defense Subcommittee made three years ago — that Marines in Iraq had “killed innocent civilians in cold blood” during a 2005 assault in Haditha; 24 civilians, including children, were killed.

Murtha’s spokesman, Matthew Mazonkey, said he wouldn’t engage the blogger.

“I’m not going to go into a tit for tat with someone that goes by the screen name ‘Uncle Jimbo,’” Mazonkey said.

What’s wrong with Hanson’s screen name? His first name is Jim and Jimbo seems logical to me.  It’s not like using something like Clownfish or some other screen name that is more humorous than serious.  For all we know Murtha could have an online screen name of Uncle Jack so I think he’s  just making an excuse so he doesn’t have to defend the indefensible. 

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