WASHINGTON — The Justice Department has reportedly opened a criminal investigation into U.S. Representative Cori Bush according to multiple reports.
Punchbowl News reporter Jake Sherman posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, that six sources familiar with the investigation confirmed the Department of Justice is looking into the "misspending of federal security money." However, the New York Times is reporting the investigation is related to campaign funds.
5 On Your Side has learned the criminal investigation has included examinations of records held by other members of Bush's office. Several of her aides have been served with subpoenas in recent weeks. Bush has not yet been charged with a crime, though her campaign's security expenses have come under scrutiny before.
In a statement, Bush's office called the allegations "frivolous complaints" and said she has "not used any federal tax dollars for personal security services."
"Any reporting that I have used federal funds for personal security is simply false," the statement said.
Bush, a Democrat who represents St. Louis in Congress, was the subject of a prior ethics investigation in 2022. After the last election cycle, campaign finance documents showed Bush's campaign had spent more than $600,000 hiring security guards. One of those security guards, Cortney Merritts, married her last year, raising further ethical questions about that financial arrangement. Bush's own aides told 5 On Your Side they repeatedly advised her against it, warning about the appearance of impropriety.
A six-month probe from the Office of Congressional Ethics eventually dismissed that complaint. Merritts has remained on the campaign payroll ever since. The most recent records show her campaign pays him $2,500 on a bi-weekly basis. Federal election law prohibits the use of campaign funds for "personal use," but Congressional ethics rules do allow members of Congress to employ their spouses to perform a "bona fide service" for the campaign.
"This investigation is coming from the Department of Justice, the White House, not the House of Representatives. They already looked into this and said they didn't find anything wrong," SLU Law Professor Anders Walker said.
He questions the timing of the probe. "Why would the Biden administration want to get Cori Bush investigated? Could be something she said, they don't like."
Back in October, the Congresswoman posted a tweet, referencing the Israel-Hamas war as "ethnic cleansing...The U.S. must stop funding these atrocities against Palestinians."
Since late 2019, she's spent more than $750,000 on private security both on Capitol Hill and at home in St. Louis.
"I retained my husband as part of my security team to provide security services, because he has had extensive experience in this area and is able to provide the necessary services at or above or below fair market rate," Bush said.
"When he began working for her, they weren't married. This is sort of a Kevin Costner movie. They fell in love. Technically if he's on her staff, she maybe should've said 'OK, Honey. I love you but you're fired'...If her husband was genuinely doing security, I don't think they're going to find anything. If he was on the beach sipping a pina colada, sure, maybe that's some type of fraud," Walker suggested.
In October, the Bush campaign said she "has staunchly maintained that her campaign is in compliance with all federal campaign laws and ethics rules, and the campaign has complied with the investigation panel’s review."
"The political attacks on my campaign are a clear example of how right-wing extremist groups will stop at nothing to malign those of use unapologetically working in service of our communities," Bush said at the time. "While these right-wing groups are fundraising off of these frivolous complaints, I am continuing to fight for St. Louis. While they are lodging dishonest and false allegations, I am holding them accountable for their rampant corruption and greed."
5 On Your Side reviewed the most recent publicly reported federal expenses filed by Bush's office, and none of them were identified as security-related, though it's not immediately clear when the questionable transactions occurred.
According to a source close to Bush, investigators may have interest in whether federal funds were used in her international trip to Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador in the spring of 2022 along with other Democratic U.S. Reps. Ilhan Omar (Minnesota), Chuy Garcia (Illinois), Jan Schakowsky (Illinois), and Rep. Jamaal Bowman (New York). Merritts made the trip along with the group.
Bush has regularly spoken about the pressures of poverty in her personal life.
In her campaign launch Saturday, Rep. Cori Bush told supporters, “I need money” for her campaign against St. Louis County Prosecutor Wesley Bell. She also lamented the high cost of living in Washington D.C.
"And let me tell you, as far as the money," Bush said. "Rashida [Tlaib] told me as soon as I entered Congress she said, 'Sis, do it different.' Look, D.C. costs about three times as much as Saint Louis. We gotta have a home where we live and we gotta have a home in D.C. So we got two homes, two sets of clothes two sets of shoes, toothpaste, everything. Bed, whatever. Utilities? Rent cost three times as much. So if you pay $1,000 a month for your rent, how much do you think it cost in DC?'"
NBC reported the clerk publicly informed lawmakers of the subpoena request when the House opened its session Monday, but few details, including who was being investigated, were provided.
“This is to notify you formally pursuant to rule 8 of the rules of the House of Representatives that the office of the sergeant at arms for the House of Representatives has been served with a grand jury subpoena for documents issued by the U.S. Department of Justice,” House Reading Clerk Susan Cole said, reading a notification from House Sergeant at Arms William McFarland.
Bush's full statement is as follows:
“First and foremost, I hold myself, my campaign, and my position to the highest levels of integrity. I also believe in transparency which is why I can confirm that the Department of Justice is reviewing my campaign’s spending on security services. We are fully cooperating in this investigation, and I would like to take this opportunity to outline the facts and the truth.
“Since before I was sworn into office, I have endured relentless threats to my physical safety and life. As a rank-and-file member of Congress, I am not entitled to personal protection by the House and instead have used campaign funds as permissible to retain security services. I have not used any federal tax dollars for personal security services. Any reporting that I have used federal funds for personal security is simply false.
“In recent months, right-wing organizations have lodged baseless complaints against me, peddling notions that I have misused campaign funds to pay for personal security services. That is simply not true. I have complied with all applicable laws and House rules–and will continue to prioritize the rules that govern us as federal elected officials.
“In particular, the nature of these allegations has been around my husband’s role on the campaign. In accordance with all applicable rules, I retained my husband as part of my security team to provide security services because he has had extensive experience in this area, and can provide the necessary services at or below a fair market rate.
“These frivolous complaints have resulted in several investigations, some of which are still ongoing. 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. 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.
“I am under no illusion that these right-wing organizations will stop politicizing and pursuing efforts to attack me and the work that the people of St. Louis sent me to Congress to do: to lead boldly, to legislate change my constituents can feel, and to save lives.”
Bush's political opponent Wesley Bell issued a statement Tuesday saying:
"A DOJ investigation into the potential misuse of public funds is a serious matter. As a prosecutor, I understand that Rep. Bush is entitled to due process. It is my hope that Rep. Bush will cooperate fully with the investigation and be transparent with the public in responding to the legitimate concerns they are likely to have. I entered this race because I believe the people of this district deserve a representative they can trust who will show up and get results for them. I feel more strongly about that now more than ever."