Former Missouri congresswoman Cori Bush, a prominent member of the progressive “Squad” and known for her anti-Israel stance, declared her intention to run again for Congress on Friday, JNS reported.
“Right now, we are in the fight of our lives. It isn’t politics as usual, and we can’t afford to operate as such,” Bush said. “This is about survival for our families, and the moment is now.”
Bush lost her seat in the Democratic primary last year to Rep. Wesley Bell, a fellow progressive with pro-Israel backing, who went on to win the general election. Reports indicated that pro-Israel lobbying group AIPAC invested $8.6 million in the race to defeat Bush.
“Cori Bush was one of the most hostile, anti-Israel voices in Congress,” said AIPAC spokesman Marshall Wittmann in a statement to JNS. “Our community was proud to help defeat her and help elect a strong Democratic leader, who fights for the people of St. Louis.”
In a video announcing her re-election bid, Bush highlighted her support for Gazans as a key achievement and accused AIPAC of targeting her re-election bid.
“Because I spoke truth, they pushed back, attacked my name, my motives, spread lies and hate,” she said, as headlines of AIPAC’s spending appeared onscreen.
Bush, along with the other members of “The Squad”, are known for their criticism of Israel and calls for the US to condition the aid it provides to the Jewish state.
In October of 2023, after Hamas’s brutal attacks on Israel, Bush called for an end to “US government support for Israeli military occupation and apartheid."
Those comments, along with comments by other “Squad” members, were blasted by then-White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, who described them as “wrong, repugnant, and disgraceful.”
In the past, Bush accused the American government of funding the Israeli military in order to “police and kill Palestinians” and also refused to participate in an interview with the St. Louis Jewish Light.