Roll Call reports that House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer believes Rep. Norm Dicks will replace the late John Murtha as chair of the Defense Appropriations Subcommittee. Dicks numbers the now-defunct PMA Group as his second-largest career donor; David Heath, then of the Seattle Times, reported on Dicks' relationship to the firm that closed its doors in the midst of a federal investigation (ongoing) into its campaign contributions to members of Congress who provided earmarks for its clients. In his 2009 report, Heath wrote:

In the past two years, Dicks pushed for nine earmarks worth $20 million for PMA clients. Those ...