Pro-Israel groups look to oust another progressive ‘squad’ member, this time in Missouri

(CNN) — Six weeks after leading the charge to oust Rep. Jamaal Bowman in a New York primary, a big-spending pro-Israel super PAC is hoping to help defeat another member of the House “squad” of progressive Democrats – Missouri Rep. Cori Bush.

Already a top target for centrist and Israel-aligned groups, Bush broke ranks with her party’s leadership to call for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza last year and has been fiercely critical of Israel’s treatment of Palestinian civilians.

Bush has drawn three challengers as she seeks a third term representing Missouri’s 1st Congressional District, the most prominent of whom is Wesley Bell, the prosecuting attorney of St. Louis County. The spending in the race has not matched the campaign against Bowman – the most expensive House primary in US history.

Nevertheless, the figures – for a safe blue district and one of 435 House seats – are remarkable. The American Israel Public Affairs Committee’s super PAC, United Democracy Project, has spent nearly $9 million on ads attacking Bush or boosting Bell.

Though Bell has been more supportive of Israel’s actions, his campaign has not focused on the issue, and voters in the majority-minority, urban district in the St. Louis area are not clashing over it with the passion seen in in more typically progressive enclaves.

Taking a page from Democrat George Latimer, who defeated Bowman in New York in June, Bell’s campaign has been more vibes-based – criticizing Bush for being too ideologically-driven, not being responsive enough to her constituents and – perhaps most potently – voting against President Joe Biden’s infrastructure bill.

“She sold out our president, and she sold out the city of St. Louis,” a person says in a United Democracy Project ad.

That vote, like Bowman’s, was lodged in protest of certain aspects of the infrastructure legislation. (The measure, however, had enough support to be passed without their votes.)

An ad from the Mainstream Democrats PAC attacked Bush for being the subject of a federal investigation over alleged misuse of campaign funds for security services. Bush has denied any wrongdoing and maintains that she complied with House rules.

Bush’s message during the campaign has been simpler and, in many ways, mimics Bowman’s efforts to cast the race as a battle between big money and the grassroots

“By supporting our grassroots campaign,” Bush said in a recent fundraising email, “you’re standing up against a grifter politician and the influence of big money in politics and demanding real representation for the people of MO-01.”

It’s a tactic that had, before this summer, been effective for progressive House members facing well-financed challengers. Pennsylvania Rep. Summer Lee fended off a primary challenge for her Pittsburgh-area seat earlier in the year and other “squad” members, most notably New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Massachusetts Rep. Ayanna Pressley, are now widely seen as invulnerable.

The Bush-Bell contest, though, is deeper than it is wide. There is no policy gulf to speak of; they are mostly aligned on the broad spectrum of issues that come before House members. They both have strong ties to 2014 police killing of Michael Brown, an unarmed Black teenager, in Ferguson, which is located in Missouri’s 1st District. The outrage around Brown’s death effectively launched the Black Lives Matter movement. Bush, a pastor, became a prominent activist in those demonstrations and she parlayed that profile into twice challenge the 1st District incumbent, William Lacy Clay, in the Democratic primary, succeeding in 2020 on her second attempt.

Bell, in contrast, had an earlier start in the political arena. He was elected to the Ferguson City Council in 2015. Three years later, running on a progressive platform, he unseated the controversial St. Louis County prosecutor Robert McCulloch, who had been in office since 1991. But like McCulloch, Bell did not charge the officer who shot Brown, irritating some supporters – including Brown’s father, who was featured last month in an ad for Bush.

“I feel like he lied to us. He never brought charges against the killer,” Brown Sr. says in the spot. “He never walked the streets of Ferguson with me. He failed to reform the office.”

In late October 2023, weeks after Hamas’ deadly attack inside Israel, Bell backed out of a Senate run against Republican Sen. Josh Hawley to announce that he would challenge Bush instead. At a news conference at the time, he suggested that the congresswoman’s stance on the conflict – she was among the first to call for a ceasefire – drew him to the race.

“Understand this unique place that we are with the world literally on fire,” Bell said. “I think that we need to make certain that we are providing that effective leadership, not only in our district but in DC and on the world stage.”

Incidentally, a few months earlier, Bell had told Bush in a phone call – first reported by KSDK in St. Louis – that he had no intention of challenging her.

“Don’t even think for even a second that that’s the case,” Bell told the congresswoman. “I’m telling you, on my word, I am not running against you. That is not happening.”

But now it is. Bell’s campaign hasn’t disputed what was said on the phone call, instead arguing that the assurance was given ahead of the October 7, 2023, attacks in Israel. His campaign manager told KSDK that Bell decided to leave the Senate primary for the House race after receiving “encouragement” from “stakeholders at the local, statewide, and national level.”

Since then, it’s been a familiar proxy clash between old foes.

AIPAC’s United Democracy Project and another pro-Israel group, Democratic Majority for Israel PAC, have invested in Bell’s cause, along with the pro-crypto Fairshake PAC and billionaire Reid Hoffman’s Mainstream Democrats PAC. In Bush’s corner, Justice Democrats, the group that became famous for recruiting Ocasio-Cortez to first run for office, and the Working Families Party are spending to defend their left-wing ally. The relative outlays, though, are stark – Bell-backers have outspent Bush’s side by about 3-to-1 on advertising.

As the incumbent, Bush does have the backing, at least on paper, from House Democratic leadership, including Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. Sens. Bernie Sanders of Vermont and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts are also on board. Ocasio-Cortez sent out fundraising appeals for the Bush campaign. At home, St. Louis City Mayor Tishaura Jones has also endorsed her.

But support for Bell is robust locally too – often a more important mark of how a low-turnout primary will pan out than any other metric. Indivisible St. Louis endorsed Bell, who also has vast support from labor. The editorial board of The St. Louis Post-Dispatch is also backing the challenger.

Top Washington Democrats have been fairly quiet, not-so-subtly signaling that Bell will be welcome. Many are still cross with Bush for ousting Clay four years ago, breaking his family’s grip on a seat they’d held since before man walked on the moon.

This story has been updated with additional information.

CNN’s David Wright contributed to this report.

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