U.S. Rep. Cori Bush is engaged in one of the most closely watched primary campaigns in the nation, a race many national pundits see as a referendum over the St. Louis County Democrat’s criticism of Israel.
During an appearance on the Politically Speaking Hour on St. Louis on the Air, Bush said her call for a cease-fire in Gaza and her criticism of Israel’s military action in Gaza is broadly popular in Missouri’s 1st Congressional District, which takes in all of St. Louis and parts of St. Louis County.
“I believe that making sure that there is safety for Israelis and Palestinians and there is a place where there is liberation and freedom for both is key,” she said.
Bush is squaring off against St. Louis County Prosecutor Wesley Bell and former state Sen. Maria Chappelle-Nadal in the Aug. 6 primary. Whoever wins will be heavily favored in November in the Democratic dominated district.
Both Bell and Chappelle-Nadal have supported Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, while Bush has been an outspoken critic and one of the main sponsors of a cease-fire resolution in the U.S. House.
While the political arms of groups like the American Israel Public Affairs Committee are backing Bell with an extensive advertising campaign, Bush said the ads don’t mention Israel. She thinks that’s purposeful, since the 1st Congressional District has a plurality Black population and national polling shows that African American voters don’t prioritize a candidate’s position on Israel when deciding how to vote.
“The videos that they put out, all of the ads, none of them reference Gaza at all,” said Bush regarding the United Democracy Project's ads against her candidacy. “And so, I'm really pissed off that there is this deceit happening. Because if you believe that's why you needed to run, then why aren't you running on that?”
She added that the 1st Congressional District’s racial makeup makes next month’s primary much different than the New York contest that ousted U.S. Rep. Jamaal Bowman.
Working in Congress
Bush said she’s been an effective advocate for the district, pointing to her push for getting American Rescue Act funding for the area, her work in getting signage at the contaminated Coldwater Creek and for mapping out where environmental-related money should go.
She added that she entered Congress at a difficult juncture where Democrats distrusted many GOP lawmakers after the Jan. 6 insurrection — and there was internal disagreement about how to steer President Joe Biden’s policy agenda.
“And so there was a lot of push and pull,” Bush said. “But we did have wins.”
Should Biden stay in?
Bush, who has not always seen eye-to-eye with Biden, said she’s listening to constituents about whether he should stay in the presidential contest but has not taken a formal position.
She said that as of Friday morning, “100%” of the callers to her St. Louis and D.C. offices want Biden to stand down.
“But we’re still listening,” she said.
Abortion rights
In her ads, Bush is making her support for abortion rights a key element of her reelection campaign. She received the sole endorsement in the race from Planned Parenthood’s political organization.
Bush has chastised Bell on abortion rights for managing the 2006 congressional campaign of Mark Byrne, a Republican who later became a member of the Ferguson City Council.
“And so the thing is, if you are supporting and working for someone who wants a constitutional amendment to ban abortion in Missouri, then how do you have the same stance as I do?” Bush asked.
Bell’s campaign spokesman told the Huffington Post that he was helping out a friend in 2006. He said on his appearance on the Politically Speaking Hour that he would support legislation legalizing abortion up to the Roe v. Wade standard, which is roughly between 24 and 28 weeks.
Bush said she’s done extensive work to support abortion rights.
She pointed to her legislation that sought to maintain access to the abortion drug mifepristone throughout the country — and her congressional testimony about expanding abortion access.
“We are not the same,” she said of Bell.
Defund the Police
Bell has criticized Bush for supporting the Defund the Police campaign.
Bush said that criticism is misplaced. She said the issue is not about taking away police pensions or denying them pay raises, but rather redirecting funds that would go to tear gas or military type equipment to health and human services programs.
“Put that money into our social safety net instead of these militarized weapons and militarized equipment,” she said.
Personal security
Bush has faced scrutiny for paying her husband to do security work for her, which is legal as long as he’s being paid fair market value for doing actual services and the money is not congressional office funding.
She said she never used money from her congressional office to pay her husband for security.
“We have followed every applicable law to make sure that that has been handled appropriately,” she said.
“St. Louis on the Air” brings you the stories of St. Louis and the people who live, work and create in our region. The show is produced by Ulaa Kuziez, Miya Norfleet, Emily Woodbury, Danny Wicentowski, Elaine Cha and Alex Heuer. The audio engineer is Aaron Doerr and the production intern is Roshae Hemmings. Send questions and comments about this story to talk@stlpr.org.
