Pelosi defends Murtha against Republican reprimand

[TheMercenary]

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Sunday defended a leading anti-war Democrat against a Republican plan to reprimand him over a political spat on defense spending.

Rep. Mike Rogers, a Michigan Republican, is expected to file a resolution this week calling for the House to reprimand Democratic Rep. John Murtha of Pennsylvania for allegedly threatening to withhold spending for defense projects backed by the Republican lawmaker.

Murtha, chairman of the powerful House Appropriations defense subcommittee, has become a target for Republican criticism because of his leading role in Democratic efforts to withdraw U.S. troops from Iraq.

In the weekly Republican radio address, Rogers accused Murtha of violating House rules by threatening defense project funding. The incident followed a failed attempt by Rogers to kill a House measure granting funding for a project in Murtha's Pennsylvania district.

http://www.reuters.com/article/polit...26120920070521