Rep. John Murtha, one of the most powerful members of the House, who served four decades representing western Pennsylvania, has died at 77.

Murtha was the longest serving member of the Pennsylvania delegation – a milestone he passed just this past Saturday. He had been hospitalized in recent weeks with a gallbladder infection, and died Monday afternoon at Virginia Hospital Center at 1:18 p.m., his office said in a statement. 

Murtha was Chairman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense, and from that perch, he controlled billions in Pentagon spending, and was one of the most respected voices on military policy. Murtha was well liked on both sides of the aisle, often holding court in the back of the House chamber in what was known as “Murtha’s Corner.” 

He was very close to Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), both having served on the Appropriations committee. Pelosi supported Murtha for majority leader in 2006 over Steny Hoyer of Maryland, but Hoyer prevailed. 

Murtha was well known for steering millions in earmarks back to his economically depressed home district, which included Johnstown, Pa., but in recent years he had come under intense scrutiny for connections between campaign donors and earmarks for projects. He was ensnared in the Abscam scandal in 1980, but he was cleared of wrongdoing as an unindicted co-conspirator. 

Murtha rejected any notion that he had a conflict of interest with his earmarks. In fact, in his official biography on his Web site, Murtha defended his efforts to steer money and jobs back home. 

“Congressman Murtha has worked hard to bring tens of thousands of family-sustaining jobs to western Pennsylvania,” the biography said. “With the wide-spread loss of coal and steel jobs that were the lifeblood of the area, he pushed the region in a new direction, intent on diversifying the economy by attracting health care, defense, medical research, tourism and high-tech jobs that would insulate the region from future shocks.” 

Murtha was born in New Martinsville, W.Va., in 1932, and grew up just east of Pittsburgh. We was an Eagle Scout who joined the Marines in 1952, then re-joined the service to serve in Vietnam. 

Murtha was the first Vietnam War combat veteran elected to Congress, in 1974.

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