The only question is: why wasn't this bastard locked up back then?

David Holman blows it open at the American Spectator, backed by the original FBI video, publicly available for the first time:

Who Did Murtha Call?

After the sheiks' representatives offered Murtha the bribe and investments in his district on January 7, who did Murtha call? Not the FBI. In fact, when the FBI talked with him on February 2, he was not truthful about his contacts about the investments with Congressman Thompson or his January 7 meeting, Thompson's attorney revealed in cross-examination with Murtha. Murtha did not report to the agents that he was offered money, or that Thompson discussed splitting money with him. He told the agents that he never had any indication of money having been paid to Thompson. He also told the FBI that Criden first called him to arrange the meeting, though he later testified it was Thompson who first called.

Did he call the Ethics Committee, of which he was a member, or Tip O'Neill, the speaker of the House, to report the bribe offer? Murtha testified that he did not report any of Congressman Thompson's statements or anything else to the Ethics Committee or to anyone else in Congress.

But Murtha did call his guy in immigration. He testified that within one week of the townhouse meeting he spoke to an immigration official about getting the sheiks into the country. Sometime after that call and after January 21, Murtha ran into Thompson at the voting slot on the House floor. There, he told Thompson that he had "talked to Immigration and [Murtha] thought something could be done." Whatever Murtha expected in return, be it friendship, or investments in his district, or "walking around money," he was doing what he told the sheiks' representatives he could do.

Read the rest at the link above. Watch the video, the first one, starting with around minute 15:00, the first part is mostly small talk. Decide for yourself if this man is honest or not.

If you doubt he is a crook, albeit a very careful one, you probably would argue the definition of "is," too . . .

UPDATE 5:00 a.m.: Others blogging on this include MurthaMustGo HERE and HERE, Red State, and BootMurtha.

UPDATED 1:11 p.m. to correct links.