Politics

Criminal Investigation Into Cori Bush’s Campaign Funds Long Overdue, Watchdogs Say

Maximus Federal Call Center Workers Protest Outside Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)

(Photo by Paul Morigi/Getty Images for Communications Workers of America (CWA))

James Lynch Contributor
Font Size:

Watchdogs are welcoming the criminal investigation into Democratic Missouri Rep. Cori Bush’s alleged campaign finance violations.

Bush is under investigation by the Department of Justice (DOJ), Federal Election Commission (FEC) and the House Ethics Committee for alleged misuse of federal security money, she confirmed in a statement Tuesday. Punchbowl News first reported on the DOJ’s criminal investigation. (RELATED: Democrat Strategist Says Cori Bush’s ‘Hypocrisy’ Is ‘Pretty Outrageous’)

The DOJ subpoenaed the House Sergeant at Arms for records related to Bush’s alleged misspending of security money, according to Punchbowl News.

“My reaction to the DOJ is what took them so long?” Hans von Spakovsky, senior legal fellow at the conservative Heritage Foundation, told the Daily Caller. “These kinds of cases are very easy to investigate,” he continued.

“The rule on this is very simple and very easy, you can make a salary payment to, for example, a member of your family, but you have to show two things … one, you have to show they were actually providing a bona fide service to the campaign, you weren’t just paying them, and second, particularly if its to a family member, you have to show that what you were paying them is the fair market value. In this case, it’s highly suspicious, not only that this guy she was paying and then later paid didn’t have a license to do security in either St. Louis or Washington D.C.,” he added.

Spakovsky is a former FEC commissioner and believes it should be “easy” for Bush’s campaign to show the actual services Merritts was providing.

Bush’s Congressional campaigns have paid her husband, Cortney Merritts, more than $60,000 for “security services” and “wage expenses” dating back to 2021, FEC filings show. The FEC’s legal authority extends to civil matters and the House Ethics Committee can make referrals based on investigative findings.

Her campaign’s payments to Merritts have been the subject of campaign finance complaints from watchdog organizations such as the Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust (FACT) and the conservative Committee to Defeat the President (CDP) for alleged misuse of campaign funds.

WASHINGTON, DC – DECEMBER 07: U.S. Rep. Cori Bush (D-MO) speak at a press conference on the Israel-Hamas war outside of the U.S. Capitol on December 07, 2023 in Washington, DC. A group of Democratic lawmakers joined by members of Doctors Against Genocide called on a permanent ceasefire in Gaza. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

“In 2023, FACT filed an official complaint regarding the details of repeated payments Rep. Cori Bush made to a man who is currently her husband. In her own FEC filings, the payments were initially characterized as being for ‘security.’ Among the many troubling facts involved that we strongly felt justified an investigation were her close personal relationship, her large payments to others for the same services at the same time and that her husband reportedly didn’t have a license to provide those services,” FACT Executive Director Kendra Arnold told the Caller in a statement.

The FEC ruled in 2021 campaigns can use funds to pay for professional private security officers to protect themselves from potential threats, Roll Call reported. Family members are permitted by the FEC to receive payments from campaigns at “fair market value” if they are providing a legitimate service.

Merritts is not a licensed security guard in Washington, D.C. or St. Louis, Missouri, where Bush’s district is located, Fox News reported. He founded a moving company in the St. Louis area in 2018, the company’s Yelp page shows.

Bush’s attorney previously wrote a letter to CDP in July arguing Merritts’ payments were at market value and he provided legitimate security services for the campaign, the Daily Caller first reported. Her campaign said Merritts “solely works on scheduling and logistics” and carries out security assessments.

“We’re proud of our work this past year to raise these issues with the Federal Election Commission, Office of Congressional Ethics, St. Louis and Washington, D.C. authorities, and formally complaining to the Justice Department about Cori Bush’s illegal payments to her husband that have now led to this investigation,” CDP Counsel Dan Backer told the Caller.

The Daily Caller previously reported in 2021 on “squad” Democratic lawmakers such as Bush, Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York spending large sums of money on “security” or “security services” after advocating for defunding urban police departments.

“Representative Cori Bush represents the worst of Washington — politicians who put their own interests and politics ahead of what’s best for citizens and their districts. Not only has she pushed a ‘Defund the Police’ movement that has made American cities and communities completely unsafe, but she has also allegedly misused campaign funds to the tune of $30,000 for her own personal protection while doing so,” Sentinel Action Fund President Jessica Anderson told the Caller.

“As citizens, we expect our representatives to be good stewards of our taxpayer dollars, and Representative Bush has apparently fallen well short of that mark. The Justice Department must fully investigate the abuse of taxpayer dollars, and the constituents of Missouri’s First Congressional District should keep this in mind come November,” Anderson added.

The Office of Congressional Ethics (OCE) issued a recommendation in September to the House Ethics Committee to dismiss campaign finance complaints connected to the payments to Merritts.

“The Federal Election Commission and the House Committee on Ethics are currently reviewing the matter, as is the Department of Justice. We are fully cooperating in all of these pending investigations,” Bush said in a statement. “In September of last year, after conducting a months-long investigation, the Office of Congressional Ethics found no wrongdoing and voted unanimously to dismiss the case. I look forward to this same outcome from all pending investigations.”