ST. LOUIS — When she officially launched her campaign for a third term, U.S. Rep. Cori Bush (D-Missouri) called on her supporters to help her define the donors lining up to oust her from Congress.
"It's called AIPAC," Bush told the crowd in a January campaign event. "I need y'all to make it clear that they're trying to buy this seat."
The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) and its affiliated political action committees have made a concerted effort to bankroll moderate Democrats in contests against incumbent progressive members who criticize and oppose efforts to send American military aid to Israel during its ongoing war with Hamas.
The funding boost has given Wesley Bell, the St. Louis County Prosecutor, a sizeable cash advantage over the two-term incumbent. The most recent campaign filings with the FEC show Bell's campaign has more than twice as much cash on hand ($1,142,508.22) as Bush does ($528,622.20).
As the two Democrats approach the final 100-day stretch before the Aug. 6 primary, Bush's campaign is spending an alarming rate of its available funds on attorney's fees. Several of the firms her campaign has on its payroll specialize in campaign finance law and criminal defense. Bush has acknowledged that while she has been cleared in one investigation, she remains the subject of ongoing probes examining her use of campaign funds. The recurring expenses on lawyers threatens to drain her political accounts of valuable resources at a time when she's trying to ward off the most well-funded challenge of her career.
Bush's campaign has highlighted the donor records linking some of Bell's backers to GOP campaigns. For example, hedge fund billionaire Daniel Loeb has contributed to campaigns for Republicans like Liz Cheney, John McCain, Adam Kinzinger, and Mitt Romney, but he's also contributed to Republicans like Kevin McCarthy, Ann Wagner, and Elise Stefanik. Loeb's extensive donor history also includes contributions to influential Democrats like Barack Obama, Harry Reid, and Cory Booker.
LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman, another billionaire, also made a maximum contribution to Bell's campaign. Hoffman is a major Biden donor who also helped fund Nikki Haley's primary campaign against Donald Trump.
“While Congresswoman Bush has delivered over $2 billion and counting for the people of St. Louis, our opponent is a Trojan horse for far-right billionaires, GOP megadonors, and their agenda in Congress," a campaign spokesman for Bush told 5 On Your Side. "AIPAC and their fundraising network offered Bell millions to sell out St. Louis, and that’s exactly what he did. Unfortunately for him, St. Louis is not for sale.”
During a December interview on The Record, Bell said he supports campaign finance reform, but said until those laws change, "this is the sandbox that we play in, we have to raise money."
Other prominent names in local circles were listed among Bell's top donors: St. Louis billionaire David Steward from World Wide Technologies, former Dick Gephardt campaign aide and prominent Democratic political operative Joyce Abbousie, and high power lawyers Jim Onder and Scott Rosenblum contributed to Bell's bid for Congress.
In addition to progressive groups like 'The Squad Victory Fund,' and 'Progressive Voices for Peace,' Bush also has an unlikely millionaire backing her campaign.
NBA star Kyrie Irving donated to Bush's campaign committee, according to documents filed with the FEC. The address Irving used to make the donation traces back to a oceanside high rise condo in Miami. The Bush campaign confirmed the donation did come from the Mavericks point guard.
It's unclear what drew Irving to invest in Bush's campaign. The controversial athlete has no recorded political donations to any other candidates or elected officials and has no known ties to the local area.
Irving was suspended by the Brooklyn Nets in 2022 for his involvement with an antisemitic film and then his "failure to disavow antisemitism" when given the chance.
Bush has highlighted a number of progressive Jewish voters in her camp to defend herself from accusations of antisemitism.
"You heard the Progressive Jews of St. Louis up here. They understand my Congresswoman is not anti semitic," Bush said in January.
"This is not about antisemitism, not about whether I hate Jewish people or not, because I absolutely don't," she said. "What it is about is white supremacy. It is about one group being greater than another group."