But this time he's backtracking after calling the very people who elected him racist.

Murtha made the remarks during an interview with the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. 

"There’s no question western Pennsylvania is a racist area.  I think Obama is going to win, but I don't think it's going to be a runaway," Murtha said when asked if people of the region would vote for Barack Obama.

The interview was printed Wednesday and immediately drew harsh criticism.  Murtha's challenger Bill Russell called the remarks inappropriate, and the McCain campaign said people of the area are more focused on issues than skin color. 

Thursday other politicians from the state recognized there are people who may have an issue with race, but disagreed with Murtha’s statements.

"Are there some people who have trouble voting for an African American? Sure.  Are there some people who have trouble voting for a woman commander in chief, sure? When I first ran for governor people said people won't vote for someone who's Jewish, we all have some levels of prejudice," Gov. Ed Rendell said. 

Rep. Bill Shuster (R, 9^th) also disagreed with Murtha.

“Is there racism in America?  Sure but I don't think its wide spread here in western and central Pennsylvania any more than it is in other parts of the country,” he said.   

Murtha did issue a statement Thursday.  In it he apologized for his remarks.

"While we cannot deny that race is a factor in this election, i believe we've been able to look beyond race these past few months, and that voters today are concerned with the policy differences of our two candidates and their vision for the future of our great country," the statement read.