Forums / Political & Legal / Critics Slam Decision to Name Navy Ship for John Murtha

The Navy's decision to name a ship for the late Rep. John Murtha has outraged some critics who have not forgiven the Pennsylvania Democrat for accusing U.S. Marines of murdering Iraqi civilians "in cold blood" five years ago.

The Navy is naming its newest San Antonio-class amphibious transport-dock LPD 26 for Murtha, the powerful chairman of the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee who became an outspoken and influential critic of the Iraq war.

Murtha died in February at age 77 after complications from gallbladder surgery.

San Antonio-class ships support Marines and can carry roughly 700 troops, their equipment and vehicles. They are usually named after cities; the USS Murtha will be a break from that tradition.

The Washington Times denounced the tribute to the powerful congressman, a former Marine Corps officer, in its editorial on Thursday.

"This is a slap in the face to every service member who bridled when Murtha publicly accused Marines in Iraq of intentionally killing women and children in cold blood," the editorial reads.

The newspaper said the honor shouldn't go to "a political hack whose most successful defensive maneuver was saving his pork-laden earmarks from surprise attacks of fiscal responsibility."