ST. LOUIS (AP) — A deep-pocketed pro-Israel super PAC that helped defeat one member of the congressional group known as the Squad is now pushing to oust another — Missouri Democrat Cori Bush.
Bush, of St. Louis, has been a vocal critic of how Israel responded when attacked by Hamas in October, calling the Israeli retaliation an “ethnic cleansing campaign,” and she was among the few House members who opposed a resolution supporting Israel. She boycotted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's speech before Congress last week, calling him a “war criminal.”
The American Israel Public Affairs Committee’s super political action committee, United Democracy Project, has spent more than $8.4 million to unseat Bush in her Aug. 6 Democratic primary against St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell, according to federal campaign finance records.
“AIPAC’s grassroots members are proud to support strong pro-Israel progressive Democrats like Wesley Bell,” an AIPAC statement to The Associated Press read. "Cori Bush has been one of the most hostile critics of Israel since she came to Congress in 2021 and has actively worked to undermine mainstream Democratic support for the U.S.-Israel relationship.”
The race points yet again to the complications the war in Gaza has caused for Democrats in this year’s elections, with core constituencies at odds over how President Joe Biden's administration has responded. The disagreement has implications ...