Politics

‘Squad’ Rep. Cori Bush MELTS DOWN After Primary Loss, Appears To Issue Threat

Published

4 months ago

August 7, 2024

The infamous “Squad” is down another member Wednesday morning after Congresswoman Cori Bush (D-MN) lost her Democratic primary. In a concession speech free of contrition or self-reflection, the far-left progressive instead appeared to issue a veiled threat against voters who gave her the boot and fair-weather friends who she thinks didn’t do enough in her hour of need.

Microphone in hand, Bush stormed back and forth across a stage at an Election night rally with supporters late Tuesday night. There, she promised her critics would finally see “the other Cori,” claiming her loss has only “radicalized” her. “Let’s be clear! Let’s be clear!” the St. Louis Democrat shouted as she grabbed the hands of fans. “Let’s talk about what it really is. Because see, now I don’t have to worry about some strings that I have attached, that as much as I love my job, but all they did was radicalize me, so now they gonna be afraid!” The audience of left-wing activists erupted in cheers. “They’re going to see this other Cori, this other side,” she continued.

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Bush’s rejection by voters in her deep-blue district was a circular end to her career in elected office. She rose to prominence locally following some of the early Black Lives Matter protests in 2014, leveraging her newfound street cred into a successful run for Congress predicated on the 2020 death of George Floyd. Bush was defeated by Wesley Bell, a pragmatic progressive and former prosecutor who promised a fresh approach to lawmaking without the self-aggrandizing stances of the “Squad.” His campaign was buttressed by over $15 million in spending by AIPAC and pro-Israel forces determined to unseat a lawmaker who has been equivocal about her opposition to Hamas. At one point, she feigned knowledge about whether Hamas qualified as a terrorist organization, forcing a spokesperson to later walk back her remarks.

A number of other self-inflicted wounds exacerbated her political exposure. In January, news surfaced of a Justice Department criminal investigation into Bush’s six-figure expenditures to a security officer with no credentials or formal job description and who had a history of making severely antisemitic statements. She later married another bodyguard at a private ceremony. She became known for drawing headlines more than support for bills, struggling to explain her plans for leveling the federal tax code and conflating Memorial Day with Veterans Day in a social media post that was later deleted.

Other Squad members, including Reps. Ilhan Omar (D-MN), Ayanna Pressley (D-MA), and Alexandria Ocasio Cortez (D-NY) do not face competitive elections this cycle. However, the loss of two key allies may force the progressive caucus to retreat and regroup around a new strategy that may focus more on results and less on rhetoric.

Congressman Matt Gaetz (R-FL), a conservative Republican who frequently pilloried Bush, wished her a backhanded goodbye after Tuesday night’s result. “I will miss Cori Bush missing every committee meeting,” he wrote on X.