‘Squad’ Member Cori Bush Faces DOJ Criminal Probe: Report

Original article here.

The Department of Justice (DOJ) is investigating Rep. Cori Bush (D-MO), a member of the leftist “Squad” and “Defund the Police” advocate, for allegedly misspending funds meant for personal security, according to a report on Tuesday.

Sources told Punchbowl News that a subpoena for records announced in the House on Monday was connected to a criminal probe into Bush. The inquiry is looking at issues related to her Member Representation Allowance (MRA).

House Sergeant at Arms William McFarland said in a message conveyed by the reading clerk that he consulted with the Office of General Counsel and determined that compliance was “consistent with the rights and privileges of the House.”

Max Cohen, a reporter for Punchbowl News, said in a post to X that he asked Bush “directly” about the investigation on Monday night. “She repeatedly declined to comment and reprimanded me for approaching her as she had a toothache,” the journalist recalled.

The Daily Wire also emailed a press officer for Bush, seeking comment on the news.

Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-CA), the chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, declined to comment on the DOJ probe news on Tuesday, saying “that’s something for the Justice Department.”

Bush has represented her St. Louis-area district since 2021 after she toppled Rep. Lacy Clay (D-MO) in the 2020 primary, and over the years she has faced scrutiny over payments for private security despite her calls to defund the police.

Fox News reported that Bush has spent more than $750,000 on private security since being elected to office. The congresswoman has previously said she was doling out money for protection because of attempts on her life.

In addition to the federal spending, Cori Bush’s congressional campaign committee has also spent over three quarters of a million dollars on security since 2020, far and away the campaign’s biggest expense category. https://t.co/GylrJyLvnJ pic.twitter.com/mdyRygRUPK

— Rob Pyers (@rpyers) January 30, 2024

Conservative watchdog groups have raised concerns about tens of thousands of campaign dollars in payments to Courtney Merrits, whom Bush married nearly a year ago after hiring him as a security guard, though the Board of the Office of Congressional Ethics recommended last year that a complaint be dismissed.

Bush issued a statement to the New York Post at the time that said right-wing groups “want me to expend energy and financial resources to defend myself against these distractions. But their grift won’t work.”