One of Congress's most outspoken critics of the war as well as last year's surge in troops, Rep. Jack Murtha (D-Penn.), told a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, news station on Thursday that he believes things have gotten better in Iraq. Yet, apart from CNN, his statements appear to have gone largely unnoticed. This of course is in stark contrast to the media frenzy that occurred in November 2005 when Murtha called for an immediate withdrawal of troops. I guess we should be thankful that CNN discovered the report done by CBS affiliate KDKA on Thursday, and shared the news with its viewers during Friday's "The Situation Room" ( video available here ): BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: After saying at one point there was no way the troop surge in Iraq would work, John Murtha is giving a nod to the operation . (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) TODD (voice-over): From one of the most brutal critics of the president's conduct in Iraq, a more upbeat take on how the war is going. Interviewed by Pittsburgh TV station KDKA, Democratic congressman and Vietnam veteran John Murtha is asked, did the surge in Iraq work? REP. JOHN MURTHA, (D) PENNSYLVANIA: I think the short term it certainly reduced incidents . I'm not sure whether it's because of the Iraqis are just worn out, but certainly the way they're doing it today makes a big difference . TODD: Murtha said that before, and he's still not backing off his overall position on Iraq, a stand he took two and a half years ...
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One of Congress's most outspoken critics of the war as well as last year's surge in troops, Rep. Jack Murtha (D-Penn.), told a Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, news station on Thursday that he believes things have gotten better in Iraq. Yet, apart from CNN, his statements appear to have gone largely unnoticed. This of course is in stark contrast to the media frenzy that occurred in November 2005 when Murtha called for an immediate withdrawal of troops. I guess we should be thankful that CNN discovered the report done by CBS affiliate KDKA on Thursday, and shared the news with its viewers during Friday's "The Situation Room" ( video available here ): BRIAN TODD, CNN CORRESPONDENT: After saying at one point there was no way the troop surge in Iraq would work, John Murtha is giving a nod to the operation . (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) TODD (voice-over): From one of the most brutal critics of the president's conduct in Iraq, a more upbeat take on how the war is going. Interviewed by Pittsburgh TV station KDKA, Democratic congressman and Vietnam veteran John Murtha is asked, did the surge in Iraq work? REP. JOHN MURTHA, (D) PENNSYLVANIA: I think the short term it certainly reduced incidents . I'm not sure whether it's because of the Iraqis are just worn out, but certainly the way they're doing it today makes a big difference . TODD: Murtha said that before, and he's still not backing off his overall position on Iraq, a stand he took two and a half years ...