Runaway runway: vanity stimulus.

• Author: Mangu-Ward, Katherine
• Position: Citings - John Murtha Johnstown-Cambria County Airport - Brief article

THE JOHN Murtha Johnstown-Cambria County Airport is a state-of-the-art facility. Its features include an $18 million runway made of reinforced concrete, a $7 million air traffic control tower, a $14 million hangar, an $8 million radar system, and a massive portrait of the airport's benefactor and namesake, Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.). Last year the airport hosted an average of 20 travelers a day. All three of its daily flights go to the same place: Washington, D.C.

During his tenure in Congress, Murtha has spent $150 million in taxpayer money on this monument to himself, located in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, about an hour outside Pittsburgh, including $30 million in defense spending to enable the airport to handle massive military aircraft. The National Guard is the only...