During the first half of 2023, Representative Cori Bush’s campaign gave thousands of dollars to her newly married spouse, Courtney Merritts, for private protection and other purposes.
A week beyond the deadline, the Missouri Democrat’s campaign handed in her committee report.
According to the latest report, Merritts was paid $30,000 in 2018, $12,500 for private security services in the first quarter, and $17,500 for protection services and “wage expenses” between April and June.
Despite her resistance, the “Squad” member sent $62,000 to PEACE Security in St. Louis, which employs numerous “security operators” with military or law enforcement expertise. In addition, during the first half of the year, the campaign paid $27,500 to Nathaniel Davis, a crackpot who says he is one hundred and nine trillion years old and has the ability to conjure tornados for security services.
Bush has stated that she needs bodyguards because of the numerous attempts on her life. She has spent over $500,000 on these costs since the beginning of 2019, with most of that money going to PEACE Security. The campaign paid hundreds of thousands to the security agency while sending Merritts $2,500 monthly for $60,000. As of late February, Merritts lacked the private security license required to legally provide protection services in St. Louis and the surrounding St. Louis County. At least two monitoring groups have complained to the FEC over the payments.
Even before she hired Merritts to provide security, Bush was under fire for employing private guards. Fox News Digital first exposed Bush’s security payments while working to defund police in July 2021, causing CBS News to investigate the money and ask if it was hypocritical to employ a security detail while pushing to take money from law enforcement. The progressive politician said she would ensure she had protection because she has had attempts on her life and “too much work to do.”
