Cori Bush's Democratic Primary Could Cost the Party Its Reproductive Justice Champion

In 2021, Rep. Cori Bush (D-MO) publicly shared her personal abortion story for the first time at a House Oversight Committee hearing, shortly after Texas' S.B. 8 ban took effect: At 17 years old, Bush chose to have an abortion after she was raped by a "friend of a friend" while on a church trip. Nearly one year after her testimony, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, and Missouri became the first state to ban abortion. “Right now, my daughter has less rights to her own body than I did when I was her age,” Bush told Jezebel in a phone interview last week. The Congresswoman says it's been difficult for her to process how she's spent the last several years fighting for reproductive justice, while her 23-year-old daughter's generation is now "fighting for reproductive freedom again." This fight requires real champions, Bush says, not "fair-weather friends"—like her Democratic opponent, Wesley Bell, who's accepted millions from the right-wing, pro-Israel AIPAC, making Bush and Bell's race the fifth most expensive House primary in history. Since first sharing her abortion story, Bush—who got her start in politics organizing and participating in demonstrations for racial justice in Ferguson—has emerged as one of the Democratic Party's most compelling voices in the fight for reproductive rights. She's both introduced and co-sponsored crucial legislation to protect abortion access, even if November 7 brings about the worst-case scenario, and has long legislated around her core belief that reproductive freedom has never guaranteed reproductive justice. The Democratic Party is currently staking its political future on abortion, and Bush has positioned herself as an indispensable leader on the issue. So, why is she facing a highly competitive primary (set for August 6) from Bell, a county prosecutor whose campaign is being funded, in part, by anti-abortion Republican donors? In October, Bush emerged as one of the first Congress members to demand a ceasefire: "To my colleagues in Congress, I urge you to choose humanity. Choose peace. Choose love. Choose courage," she said in remarks introducing her resolution on October 19, at the onset of this iteration of Israel's war on Gaza that's since killed 40,000 Palestinians, including over 16,000 children. Super PACs, foreign alliances, dark money—nothing should prevent us from condemning attacks on human rights, reproductive rights. Soon after, despite assuring Bush last June that he wouldn't run for her seat, Bell pivoted from running for Senate against Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) to primarying Bush. Bell claimed at the time that he made this choice after "[hearing] ... from Democrats: Yes, we need you in Washington, but St. Louis needs you in the House of Representatives." He’s since quietly taken money from Hawley’s donors and those of Sen. Eric Schmitt (R), who formerly served as state attorney general and ensured Missouri's total abortion ban took effect, HuffPost reported in May. In a statement to the outlet, Bell maintained that he's a "progressive prosecutor who will stand up for President Biden’s agenda and oppose MAGA extremists and Donald Trump." In June, Politico reported that half of donors who have given to Democratic candidates via AIPAC this cycle have given to anti-abortion Republicans since 2020. The lobbying group has endorsed over 200 anti-abortion Congressional Republicans this cycle alone. And as of July, AIPAC has poured over $7 million into Bell's campaign. It's an amount of money that Bush, who's emphatically opposed the influence of PACs and dark money groups throughout her career, finds appalling: “My district isn’t for sale," she said. "And it’s not going to be just a stepping stone in a politician's career.”   ICYMI Cori Bush's AIPAC-backed challenger has tried…