Missouri Rep. Cori Bush Spent Nearly $70,000 On Private Security

[esmith]

The title almost says it all, what it doesn't say is she is major critic of law enforcement and one of the most ardent advocates in favor of defunding the police
'Squad' member Cori Bush, a 'defund the police' advocate, recently spent $70,000 on private security

 

[Quetzal]

Private security and the police are two different things.

 

[SigurdReginson]

I'm curious to know why this matters. Is there supposed to be some kind of hypocrisy or something that I'm missing?

 

[Twilight Hue]

The title almost says it all, what it doesn't say is she is major critic of law enforcement and one of the most ardent advocates in favor of defunding the police
'Squad' member Cori Bush, a 'defund the police' advocate, recently spent $70,000 on private security

Using her personal money or taxpayers money?

 

[Twilight Hue]

Private security and the police are two different things.

That line is slowly getting blurred.

SPCA?

Private prisons?


I easily see corporate police on the horizon.

 

[Quetzal]

That line is slowly getting blurred.

SPCA?

Private prisons?


I easily see corporate police on the horizon.

That may be true, but for now, I think the distinction is clear enough that we don't have to compare them to have a meaningful discussion. I am curious how her security budget compares to some of her peers.

 

[esmith]

Using her personal money or taxpayers money?

Bush's campaign sent $54,120.92 in payments between April 15 and June 28 for "security services" to RS&T Security Consulting, a New York-based firm with a mysterious online presence, Federal Election Commission records released Thursday show. The Democrat's campaign also paid $15,000 to Nathaniel Davis for "security services" over the same time period.

The $69,120 in security payments accounted for more than a third of Bush's $197,000 in campaign expenditures during the second quarter, the FEC records show. It's also nearly double what her campaign spent on private security during the first quarter of 2021.

 

[mikkel_the_dane]

Bush's campaign sent $54,120.92 in payments between April 15 and June 28 for "security services" to RS&T Security Consulting, a New York-based firm with a mysterious online presence, Federal Election Commission records released Thursday show. The Democrat's campaign also paid $15,000 to Nathaniel Davis for "security services" over the same time period.

The $69,120 in security payments accounted for more than a third of Bush's $197,000 in campaign expenditures during the second quarter, the FEC records show. It's also nearly double what her campaign spent on private security during the first quarter of 2021.

So her personal money. Are you a communist, who wants to control how she spends her money?

 

[Quetzal]

Bush's campaign sent $54,120.92 in payments between April 15 and June 28 for "security services" to RS&T Security Consulting, a New York-based firm with a mysterious online presence, Federal Election Commission records released Thursday show. The Democrat's campaign also paid $15,000 to Nathaniel Davis for "security services" over the same time period.

The $69,120 in security payments accounted for more than a third of Bush's $197,000 in campaign expenditures during the second quarter, the FEC records show. It's also nearly double what her campaign spent on private security during the first quarter of 2021.

Unfortunately, this doesn't answer the question because we probably don't know. Which is fine, but the distinction could offer interesting possibilities. Since we don't know, I think this article, along with the assumed conclusion, is a nothing sandwich (with chips).

 

[ecco]

The title almost says it all, what it doesn't say is she is major critic of law enforcement and one of the most ardent advocates in favor of defunding the police
'Squad' member Cori Bush, a 'defund the police' advocate, recently spent $70,000 on private security

Maybe she felt she needed private security based on what Right-Wing Trump Sheeples did on January 6th.

Or maybe she has reasons to fear Right-Wing Trump Supporters in general.

Rep. Cori Bush shares racist death threats received since taking office

ST. LOUIS– Missouri Democrat Rep. Cori Bush took to Twitter recently to share some of the racist death threats she has received since being elected as Missouri’s first black congresswoman in 2020.

Thursday, Bush tweeted, “White supremacists wanted me dead before I came to Congress. And white supremacist threats on my life have only intensified as a Black woman speaking truth in the halls of power. Just know: They won’t stop us. They can’t.”

Bush then tweeted some of the messages she received. One said you’re going to get yourself ‘murdered’ if you kept running your mouth. There was some racist language included in that message.​

 

[Quetzal]

Maybe she felt she needed private security based on what Right-Wing Trump Sheeples did on January 6th.

Or maybe she has reasons to fear Right-Wing Trump Supporters in general.

Rep. Cori Bush shares racist death threats received since taking office

ST. LOUIS– Missouri Democrat Rep. Cori Bush took to Twitter recently to share some of the racist death threats she has received since being elected as Missouri’s first black congresswoman in 2020.

Thursday, Bush tweeted, “White supremacists wanted me dead before I came to Congress. And white supremacist threats on my life have only intensified as a Black woman speaking truth in the halls of power. Just know: They won’t stop us. They can’t.”

Bush then tweeted some of the messages she received. One said you’re going to get yourself ‘murdered’ if you kept running your mouth. There was some racist language included in that message.​

This was my assumption as well. It is not unheard of (in fact, I would guess it is pretty common) for a representative to invest in security if they are a high-profile member of congress and they require it. I would also guess that there are many others out there with similar budgets (if not more).

 

[epronovost]

Well if security is a concern, your average joe citizen would do better with a far less heavily armed and violently trained police force and much more social services working in prevention of criminality like street workers, universal healthcare, specialized educator, breakfast clubs, youth centers, parks, city sanitation, etc. Your average citizen, unlike your average celebrity or national politicians doesn't have crazy people gunning for them.

 

[Father Heathen]

The title almost says it all, what it doesn't say is she is major critic of law enforcement and one of the most ardent advocates in favor of defunding the police
'Squad' member Cori Bush, a 'defund the police' advocate, recently spent $70,000 on private security

Therefore?

 

[Father Heathen]

I easily see corporate police on the horizon.

Wouldn't conservatives consider this a good thing? Less government, less taxes, privatized, capitalist, etc.?

 

[esmith]

Just looking at it from the point of those minority areas were the shootings are happening and wondering how the residents feel about her drive to dufund the police while she can afford private security and they can't but have to rely of the police force.

 

[Jose Fly]

Just looking at it from the point of those minority areas were the shootings are happening and wondering how the residents feel about her drive to dufund the police while she can afford private security and they can't but have to rely of the police force.

Do you understand that "defund the police" is not "no police"?

 

[esmith]

Do you understand that "defund the police" is not "no police"?

Then in you opinon what does it mean? Inquiring minds want to know.

 

[Jose Fly]

Then in you opinon what does it mean? Inquiring minds want to know.

Here's how I understand it based on what I've read from "defund the police" advocates.

Given the well-documented issues with policing in the US, ideally we could just reform policing by doing things like revising training to emphasize de-escalation, not relying on police to solve every problem/issue that pops up in a community (mental health issues, domestic disputes, property disputes, fender-benders), scaling back use of deadly force, rethinking how to deal with non-violent unarmed suspects when they flee, and a host of other things. Most, if not all, of these have been proposed and advocated for years, and in some cases communities have attempted to institute such reforms.

The problem is, in many locales there are institutional obstacles to doing so, such as police unions, long-term contracts, and ingrained culture within police departments, and as a result the problematic status quo persists.

That's where "defund the police" comes in. That approach calls for completely tearing down the entire policing system (locally) and institutions and rebuilding them from the ground up. So rather than trying to work around all the obstacles that have been preventing meaningful reform, you just do away with them altogether.

So if for example, your goal is to stop having the police respond to mental health crises and have mental health professionals handle them instead, you're going to need to move some funding away from the police department and into mental health agencies. "Defund the police" says don't bother trying to convince the police union to support that, nor should you waste time trying to revise your existing contracts. Instead, just rip it all up and start over.

Now, that's not the only version of "defund the police" I've seen. There are also versions that are more about what I described above, redirecting some of the police departments' money to other social services like mental health.

You can also read this: 7 myths about “defunding the police” debunked (brookings.edu)

Hope that helps.

 

[Twilight Hue]

Wouldn't conservatives consider this a good thing? Less government, less taxes, privatized, capitalist, etc.?

I dont like it. Do corporations have to abide by the constitution?

Also remember that ongoing racket on prison profiteering, resulting in massive civil rights violations in 2015?

Like this scumbag did here....


This Judge Sold Children To Private Prisons For Cash, Now He's Facing Nearly 30 Years


Nope. I'm completely against privatization of any enforcement entity. Even non-profit.

 

[Stevicus]

One thing I noticed in the article is that it mentions security expenses of other members of The Squad:

Other "Squad" members, such as Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, and Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts, also spent campaign cash on personal details while advocating for defunding the police.

Those three, however, have dropped much less money into security than Bush. During the second quarter, Ocasio-Cortez spent just over $4,000, Omar paid $2,800, and Pressley dished out $3,500 for protection, FEC records show.

Their expenses appear to be significantly less.