Good morning. It’s an honor for me to be here.
Let me start off by saying thank you to Captain Billington, the Navy, and really, everyone here, for their selfless service to our nation. We remain grateful for all you do, and of course, for your immaculate stewardship of ships like this one.
I thought I’d share a little bit about the man whom this ship is named after, to paint a picture of the incredible figure he was.
Jack Murtha was my first boss. He was a highly decorated Marine, and a distinguished Vietnam War combat veteran. The first Vietnam veteran elected to Congress. He was also my commissioning officer into the U.S. Air Force. He had a commanding presence – some 6 foot 4 inches, and a booming voice. So, could he be scary? You bet. But he also had a great smile, and a contagious laugh.
He was a small business owner – he had the first automatic car wash in Johnstown, PA, where I grew up. My sister was the receptionist and cashier there, and Mrs. Murtha was the den mother for my three sister’s girl scout troop. They were neighbors to us in the older part of Westmont, a beautiful area of Johnstown overlooking the city, and just a few blocks away from the world-famous inclined plane.
In the summer of 1986, I met Mr. Murtha at an event in Johnstown. When he found out I was going to Lehigh University on an Air Force ROTC scholarship, he asked me to come work in his DC office the next summer. The rest, as they say, is history. I think I set a record for the longest serving intern in the Murtha office, and then I worked there again during law school.
When I was graduating from Lehigh, Mr. and Mrs. Murtha flew to Bethlehem, PA, spoke at our Air Force detachment’s commissioning ceremony, and pinned my second lieutenant bars on me. I couldn’t have been more proud, more excited about the future, and more grateful.
Fast forward to 2008, and the new Secretary of State, Secretary Clinton, is looking for an Assistant Secretary of State for Legislative Affairs. Unbeknownst to me, she did her homework and called one person for a reference on me – that person was Jack Murtha. He called me and said I told Mrs. Clinton you were the right guy for the job – so don’t mess it up!
For me, starting out my career and professional development with someone like Congressman Murtha – or Mr. Chairman – as everyone would call him was such a gift, a true lightning strike of good fortune. Let me tell you three things about him that may or may not come through from the Wikipedia page or Google searches.
First, he knew how to get things done. Big, complicated things like funding the U.S. military, but also less expensive consequential things for people in the 12th district of Pennsylvania – a road needed to be repaired, a social security check wasn’t delivered on time, a worker lost a job and needed federal help – once Jack Murtha was seized with an issue you know it would get done. He was a master of the appropriations process, and was either chair or ranking member of the defense subcommittee for years.
But given his upbringing and modest roots, he was also seized with what was impacting people in their daily lives, and he knew government could play a role to help make their lives better.
That’s why if you walked down to the floor of the House of Representatives on any given day, there would be a line of people to see him in the back of the chamber, a section that was originally called the Pennsylvania Corner but quickly became known as the “Murtha corner.” There was a tacit understanding that the corner chair was his and nobody dared to sit in it.
The Murtha corner was where other members of Congress would go and seek his help – he didn’t care where you were from, what party you were in – if you needed help, he was on the case. Presidents, Secretaries of Defense, union workers and veterans – they all counted on him, and he delivered like nothing I’ve seen in my career since.
Second, for someone with roots in West Virginia and Western Pennsylvania, Jack Murtha was a student of history, and student of the world. I’ve never seen someone so curious, so interested, so committed to understanding what was happening in the world around us. We saw it in who came into the office – foreign leaders and officials from every country.
But we also saw it in how he interacted with new immigrants to America, including my own family. He wanted to know about other cultures and, again, he treated everyone, regardless of your status or place of origin, equally. I also think this helps explain his popularity and respect he had with members of the Congressional Black and Hispanic caucuses as well.
And, yes, his heart was with the military, but he loved the State Department and the work of diplomacy, too. I recall when I was Assistant Secretary, he was always looking to provide the State Department and USAID with more funding because he really believed in the work, and he thought diplomacy and development were the best ways to minimize conflict.
The parallel for me that comes to mind is President Eisenhower: also from humble beginnings — from Kansas — yet became a student of the world, and so interested in young people from other countries and their stories, and yes, the work of diplomacy too.
This was Jack Murtha. You can’t train this kind of interest or commitment in people – Jack Murtha simply had it, and he too was an incredible global citizen and leader.
Finally, let me just say, Jack Murtha was a great American. I know we use that phrase perhaps too much, but it would be hard for me to think of a better representation of what our country stands for.
Someone who was not a son or daughter of privilege, dedicates himself to public service, volunteers for service in Vietnam, and returns with two purple hearts and a bronze star, and yes, goes on to become an incredibly powerful legislator, but never forgets his roots, and sets out on a path to help people, and help make the world more peaceful.
His embrace of people from different backgrounds, his commitment to work across the aisle to support our country, his openness to question popular sentiment as he did with the Iraq war – these are all traits that we could use more of today, not less.
I will never forget those first few summers of working in his office, seeing President Reagan’s defense secretary, Casper Weinberger, come into the office, and then the following year, President Bush’s defense secretary, Dick Cheney, come into the office, and they would basically map out and settle on the elements of the annual defense funding priorities.
Again, it was a masterclass in how to get things done and how not to let politics divide us, especially on the big questions of national security. It’s why VP Cheney still speaks so admirably about Jack Murtha and their work together, and why he came to Johnstown just a few years ago to honor him on Veterans Day. Jack Murtha, a great American.
I’m so thankful for everything that the crew does on this incredible American vessel to keep our nation strong – Mr. Murtha would be so proud of all of you. I also really appreciate you letting me give you a few insights into who this ship was named for – perhaps some additional facts and stories you may not have known.
Thank you for your great service to the country.
