OPINION:
Rep. Cori Bush is in trouble in more ways than one. The outspoken Missouri Democrat is not only getting blown out in her primary, according to polls, but is also facing a Justice Department investigation into alleged criminal behavior.
As the attorney who exposed Ms. Bush’s wrongdoing on behalf of the Committee to Defeat the President, I’m glad to see our complaint to the Department of Justice bear fruit. It’s no surprise, with the facts and the law stacked against her, that her cheer squad has resorted to alleging racism as a last-ditch effort to escape accountability.
According to BET columnist Michael Arceneaux, there is no crime in a member of Congress — as long as they are Black — hiring security at a time when “threats to lawmakers are real.”
He wrote, “It is unsurprising that a Black woman would bear the greater burden of rising political violence in America.” Mr. Arceneaux goes on, failing to understand why it is criminal for Ms. Bush to “use campaign funds to pay her husband, a U.S. Army veteran, market rate for private security services.”
At the very least, here’s why it could be problematic: First and foremost, what “threats”? Despite ample opportunity to do so, Ms. Bush has never once revealed a single threat made against her — neither publicly nor to the Federal Election Commission, as others have. Maybe the same men who “jumped” disgraced actor Jussie Smollett are now threatening her?
Secondly, under the guise of desperately needed security, Ms. Bush lined her family’s pockets with campaign dollars. She either paid her lover and now-husband to perform “security” work he could not legally provide — a violation of federal law by her and local law by him — or just paid him meretriciously (while she had other, licensed security firms on her campaign payroll, this looks likely).
It is legal (though generally unwise) to pay family members and lovers from campaign funds. But (and it’s a big but) they must perform “bona fide services” at or below fair market value. It is illegal to take campaign contributions and funnel them to yourself, your family, or your freaky-time pals for fake work. Doing so violates at least four federal laws.
So why did the committee file its complaint in the first place? Because Ms. Bush’s man, Cortney Merritts, is not licensed to provide security services in her home district of St. Louis or in the nation’s capital, both of which require licensing. Without that licensing, Mr. Merritts’ “work” was either fake (reporting payments for work not performed) or provided unlawfully (a violation of federal election law as well). Either way, Ms. Bush broke the law.
And then, for good measure, Ms. Bush fumbled the cover-up, changing the description on continued payments to Mr. Merritts at the same pace and rate — meaning he either wasn’t providing security before (false FEC reporting in the past), wasn’t anymore (then why pay him now?), or he was still, now filing false FEC reports to obscure why he’s being paid (for something he still cannot legally be paid for).
This Catch-22 led us to file follow-up complaints to the FEC, Justice Department and others. Meanwhile, Ms. Bush still didn’t get her husband licensed (why not?) and couldn’t prove his “extensive security experience” (again, why not?).
If Ms. Bush’s team had just fessed up and agreed to get Mr. Merritts licensed, no one would have cared. But they doubled down, even having their lawyer demand we stop complaining about her misconduct. We didn’t.
Shame on Democrats and their media allies at BET and elsewhere for playing the race card. This isn’t a story about race. It’s about corrupt politicians getting caught breaking the law and saying whatever they can to save their bacon.
• Dan Backer is a veteran campaign counsel, having served more than 100 candidates and political action committees, overseeing more than $150 million in political spending over the past decade. He practices law as a member of Chalmers, Adams, Backer & Kaufman LLC.
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