Local News
Cori Bush Offers No Apologies — for Hamas Vote or Security Spending | St. Louis

[ad_1]
click to enlarge MONICA OBRADOVIC Cori Bush, center, celebrates her reelection victory in 2022. She wed Cortney Merritts, right, in 2023.
Congresswoman Cori Bush, whose criticism of Israel after the October 7 terrorist attack drew a serious primary challenge and whose employment of her husband has now drawn a Department of Justice Investigation, is choosing to face her critics head on on both fronts.
Yesterday, the St. Louis Democrat appeared on MSNBC’s The ReidOut and defended paying her husband Cortney Merritts for security services, saying that her campaign had trouble retaining quality staff and that Merritts, a military veteran, worked security for the campaign as a volunteer before taking on a paying role.
It is legal for Bush to pay her spouse as a campaign staffer, so long as he is providing a “bona fide” service at or below market rate. According to filings by her campaign released last night, Bush paid Merritts $27,500 from the campaign in the final three months of last year.
However, according to the Washington Post, the DOJ’s interest in Bush’s security spending likely stems not from whom she paid, but where the money came from.
The paper reported on Tuesday that investigators are looking into the misuse of “money intended for members of Congress and candidates to spend on private security.”
All representatives in Congress receive a Members’ Representational Allowance to fund their office’s operations, but the amount of money that can be spent from that allowance on security is capped at $10,000. If Bush spent more than $10,000 from that fund, or if the money from that fund was somehow spent improperly, she could be in legal jeopardy.
As is their typical protocol, the DOJ hasn’t issued any sort of statement about the investigation and its exact scope is unknown. But, as local attorney Al Watkins tells the RFT of the DOJ, “If they have concerns, she ought to have concerns.”
The investigation only became public after various people received subpoenas in regards to it, including members of Bush’s staff and the U.S. House of Representatives sergeant at arms, who handles law enforcement duties for the legislative body.
Bush has historically spent more on security than the average congressperson, saying that such spending on security is legitimate given the steady stream of racist vitriol she’s subjected to. (Earlier this week a Texas Congressman called Bush’s husband a “thug” on CNN and blamed the threats Bush receives on Bush herself.)
Throughout her tenure in Congress, Bush has faced charges of hypocrisy that she spends so much on her own security while advocating for less spending on policing. That argument has gotten a lot of play in right-wing media, though St. Louis city voters don’t seem to be particularly agitated by it. An Axios story that came out in February 2022 put Bush in the top five of senators and representatives in terms of security expenditures, with her spending on average around $230,000 a year on security (including a total of about $120,000 in total to Merritts over three years). She won re-election by 40 points in 2022.
Still, the news of the DOJ investigation is likely a boon of the campaign of Bush’s challenger, St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell.
“If you’re the Bell campaign, you might just try to use this to frame Cori Bush as a person who brings controversy or chaos to the district, and you want somebody who is reliable, who follows the rules,” says University of Missouri St. Louis political science professor Anita Manion. “It might be a way for him to frame [the investigation] in a narrative that he’s already starting to spin.”
Bell jumped into the race after Bush faced significant criticism over her response to the Hamas attack on October 7. She called Israel’s military response a form of ethnic cleansing and called for an end to U.S. aid to Israel. In November, dozens of local synagogues and Jewish leaders co-signed a letter chastising Bush for her comments.
In the months since, Bush has only leaned further into her stance. She made the war in Gaza a central theme of her campaign kick-off over this past weekend, again calling for an end to aid to Israel and appearing on stage with an activist who has said in the past that President Joe Biden belongs in prison for his handling of the war in the Middle East.
Yesterday, Bush was one of only two representatives to vote against a bill that would ban members of Hamas or anyone else who participated in the October 7 attack from entering the United States. She called the bill “a redundant, empty messaging bill Republicans are using to target immigrants and incite anti-Palestinian hate.”
According to fundraising numbers released yesterday, Bell and Bush raised roughly the same amount in the last quarter of 2023. Bell took in $490,121, a few thousand more than Bush. However, Bell spent less and ended the year with significantly more cash on hand.
Subscribe to Riverfront Times newsletters.Follow us: Apple News | Google News | NewsBreak | Reddit | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Or sign up for our RSS Feed
[ad_2]
Source link
Local News
Fenton Man Charged in Sword Attack on Roommate

[ad_1]
A warrant is out for a Fenton man’s arrest after he allegedly attacked his roommate with a sword.
Police say that on Sunday, Angelus Scott spoke openly about “slicing his roommate’s head” before he grabbed a sword, raised it up and then swung it down at the roommate.
The roommate grabbed Scott’s hand in time to prevent injury. When police arrived at the scene, they found the weapon used in the assault.
The sword in question was a katana, which is a Japanese sword recognizable for its curved blade.
This isn’t the first time a samurai-style sword has been used to violent effect in St. Louis. In 2018, a man hearing voices slaughtered his ex-boyfriend with a samurai sword. His mother said he suffered from schizoaffective disorder.
As for Scott, 35, the St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office was charged yesterday with two felonies, assault first degree and armed criminal action. The warrant for his arrest says he is to be held on $200,000 bond.
Subscribe to Riverfront Times newsletters.Follow us: Apple News | Google News | NewsBreak | Reddit | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Or sign up for our RSS Feed
[ad_2]
Source link
Local News
Caught on Video, Sheriff Says He’s Ready to ‘Turn It All Over’ to Deputy

[ad_1]
Video of St. Louis Sheriff Vernon Betts taken by a former deputy suggests that the sheriff has a successor in mind to hand the reins of the department over to, even as Betts is in an increasingly heated campaign for reelection.
“I ain’t here for all this rigmarole,” Betts says in the video while seated behind his desk at the Carnahan Courthouse. “The Lord sent me here to turn this department around and I’m doing the best I can and I think I’ve done a good job. I’ve got about eight months and I’m going to qualify for my fourth pension.”
He goes on, “Right now I can walk up out of here and live happily ever after and forget about all this…and live like a king.”
The sheriff then says his wife has been in Atlanta looking at houses and that the other deputy in the room, Donald Hawkins, is someone Betts has been training “to turn it all over to him.”
Asked about the video, Betts tells the RFT, “My future plans are to win reelection on August 6th by a wide margin and to continue my mission as the top elected law enforcement official to make St. Louis safer and stronger. Serving the people of St. Louis with integrity, honor and professional law enforcement qualifications is a sacred responsibility, and I intend to complete that mission.”
The video of Betts was taken by Barbara Chavers, who retired from the sheriff’s office in 2016 after 24 years of service. Chavers now works security at Schnucks at Grand and Gravois. Betts’ brother Howard works security there, too.
Chavers tells the RFT that she was summoned to Betts’ office last week after Betts’ brother made the sheriff aware that she was supporting Montgomery. It was no secret: Chavers had filmed a Facebook live video in which she said she was supporting Betts’ opponent Alfred Montgomery in the election this fall. “Make the judges safe,” she says in the video, standing in front of a large Montgomery sign on Gravois Avenue. “They need a sheriff who is going to make their courtrooms safe.”
In his office, even as Chavers made clear she was filming him, Betts told Chavers he was “flabbergasted” and “stunned” she was supporting Montgomery.
“I don’t know what I did that would make you go against the preacher man,” he says, referring to himself. He then refers to Montgomery as “ungodly.”
Betts goes on to say that not long ago, he was walking in his neighborhood on St. Louis Avenue near 20th Street when suddenly Montgomery pulled up in his car and, according to Betts, shouted, “You motherfucker, you this, you that. You’re taking my signs down.”
Montgomery tells the RFT that he’s never interacted with Betts outside of candidate forums and neighborhood meetings.
“I don’t think anyone with good sense would do something like that to a sitting sheriff,” Montgomery says.
Montgomery has had campaign signs missing and on at least two occasions has obtained video of people tearing them down. (Chavers notes that the sign that she filmed her original Facebook video in front of is itself now missing.)
One man who lives near Columbus Square says that he recently put out two Montgomery signs, which later went missing. “If they keep taking them, I’ll keep putting them up,” he said.
Betts says he has nothing to do with the missing signs. In the video Chavers filmed in Betts’ office, Betts says that his campaign isn’t in a spot where it needs to resort to tearing down opponents’ signs.
“If you sit here long enough, a man is getting ready to come across the street from City Hall bringing me $500, today,” Betts says. “I’m getting that kind of support. I don’t need to tear down signs.”
Subscribe to Riverfront Times newsletters.Follow us: Apple News | Google News | NewsBreak | Reddit | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Or sign up for our RSS Feed
[ad_2]
Source link
Local News
St. Louis to Develop First Citywide Transportation Plan in Decades

[ad_1]
The City of St. Louis is working to develop its first citywide mobility plan in decades, Mayor Tishaura Jones’ office announced Tuesday. This plan seeks to make it easier for everyone — drivers, pedestrians, bikers and public transit users — to safely commute within the city.
The plan will bring together other city projects like the Brickline Greenway, Future64, the MetroLink Green Line, and more, “while establishing new priorities for a safer, more efficient and better-maintained transportation network across the City,” according to the release.
The key elements in the plan will be public engagement, the development of a safety action plan, future infrastructure priorities and transportation network mapping, according to Jones’ office.
The overarching goals are to create a vision for citywide mobility, plan a mixture of short and long-term mobility projects and to develop improved communication tools with the public to receive transportation updates. In recent years, both people who use public transit and cyclists have been outspoken about the difficulties — and dangers — of navigating St. Louis streets, citing both cuts to public transit and traffic violence.
To garner public input and participation for the plan, Jones’ office said there will be community meetings, focus groups and a survey for residents to share their concerns. The city will also be establishing a Community Advisory Committee. Those interested in learning more should check out at tmp-stl.com/
“Everyone deserves to feel safe when getting around St. Louis, whether they’re driving, biking, walking or taking public transit,” Jones said in a news release. “Creating a comprehensive transportation and mobility plan allows us to make intentional and strategic investments so that moving around St. Louis for jobs, education, and entertainment becomes easier, safer and more enjoyable.”
Subscribe to Riverfront Times newsletters.Follow us: Apple News | Google News | NewsBreak | Reddit | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | Or sign up for our RSS Feed
[ad_2]
Source link
-
Politics11 months ago
Prenzler ‘reconsidered’ campaign donors, accepts vendor funds
-
Business2 years ago
Fields Foods to open new grocery in Pagedale in March
-
Board Bills2 years ago
2022-2023 Board Bill 168 — City’s Capital Fund
-
Business2 years ago
We Live Here Auténtico! | The Hispanic Chamber | Community and Connection Central
-
Entertainment2 years ago
St.Louis Man Sounds Just Like Whitley Hewsten, Plans on Performing At The Shayfitz Arena.
-
Board Bills6 months ago
2024-2025 Board Bill 80 — Prohibiting Street Takeovers
-
Board Bills2 years ago
2022-2023 Board Bill 189 — Public Works and Improvement Program at the Airport
-
Local News2 years ago
VIDEO: St. Louis Visitor Has Meltdown on TikTok Over Gunshots