Oct 29, 2006 By Josh Krysak 5 min read

When incumbent U.S. Rep. John P. Murtha (D-Johnstown) talks about the war in Iraq, his gray eyebrows furrow and his forehead creases. When his challenger for the House seat, Washington County Commissioner Diana L. Irey, discusses the ongoing battle, her eyes draw down and her lips pull tight.

The concern for the war is evident in both candidates for the 12th Congressional District seat, but their proposed solutions to the complex struggle could not be more different.

With the war in Iraq now firmly entrenched in a third year, the struggle has resulted in the death of more than 2,800 U.S. servicemen and has risen to the forefront of the issues being debated during the election cycle.

Irey, who said she entered the election because of Murtha’s stance on the war, said she is disappointed in the direction the conflict in Iraq has taken and proposed instituting firm plans for turning over the “civil war-like” battle to the Iraqis.

Murtha, who caused a national stir with by calling for the immediate withdrawal of U.S. forces in Iraq last year, is pushing for an immediate end to the conflict, which he says is straining the American pocketbook and the nation’s patience.

“It is proven more and more each day that we cannot win this war with our military,” Murtha said. “This is a civil war. Now the administration demonizes anyone who disagrees with their policy, but this thing is out of control. We spend $11 million an hour funding the war, $8 billion a week.”

“Things in Iraq have not gone as well as we had hoped,” Irey said.

“What we need to do is establish criteria with the Iraqi government for their takeover of the country. We need to require them to take the lead in missions and negotiations need to be made in regards to a withdrawal. We don’t want to be there any longer than we have to, but we want to do it responsibly.”

According to Irey, while the initial invasion was based on some intelligence that has been determined faulty, Iraq was still a sponsor and harbor for terrorist organizations and the war has resulted in the destruction of 70 percent of the terror structure in the country as well as the capture of dictator Saddam Hussein.

Irey said she believes that while many good things have been accomplished as a result of the invasion, the war has lagged because the initial wave of ground forces was too small.

The 12-year veteran of county government said while she has supported President Bush on many decisions during his two-term presidency, including the decision to invade Iraq, she is not ready to take marching orders in Washington, D.C., on the war or any other issue.

“I have never been a party-line person,” Irey said. “I have always made decisions based on what I believe in and I am ready to play hardball by using appropriations as a tool.”

She said that she would consider holding out on war funding unless stricter guidelines were established for turning over the conflict to the new Iraqi government to ensure a speedier exit for U.S. troops.

Murtha, a Vietnam veteran who initially voted to approve the invasion of Iraq, said he changed his mind about the conflict after talking with soldiers and watching the war spiral out of control.

“I talk to people with tears in there eyes over this,” he said. “It used to be when I visited the veteran’s hospitals that the soldiers wanted sent back to their buddies, now they want their buddies sent home.”

Murtha, who was at once honored and lambasted by supporters and critics after his remarks on immediate withdrawal of troops last year, said his support for troops in Iraq has never wavered despite his political battles over the conflict.

“See, I’m good at fighting back and I have the support to do it,” Murtha said. “I didn’t appreciate people with five deferments of service sitting on their backsides in air-conditioned offices saying we need to stay the course in Iraq. I was the one who discovered we had inadequate armor shields. I was the one who found the Bradley’s were not outfitted properly.

“The war had three problems. We had inadequate forces. There was no threat to our national security. And, we had no exit strategy.”

While Murtha said he had “no intent’ to become a national spokesman for the Democratic Party on the war, he found himself pressed to restrain comment over the past year after what he called the “arrogance” of the Bush administration.

“They don’t want to listen to anything,” Murtha said. “I feel that if it’s not working, you have to change it. But they don’t want to discuss it.”

Irey and Murtha will face off for the Congressional seat on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 7.