The White House on Wednesday condemned “inflammatory” comments by Rep. Cori Bush (D-Missouri) after she vowed to retaliate against a major pro-Israel lobbying group that backed her opponent in a primary to unseat her in the House.
“I love my job, but they’ve only radicalized me, and now they should be afraid,” Bush said in a speech Tuesday night after losing the Democratic primary to St. Louis County Attorney Wesley Bell.
“Soon they will see this other Cori, this other side,” she said, adding, “And let me say this: AIPAC, I am coming to destroy your kingdom!”
The United Democracy Project, a super PAC affiliated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), was the largest donor to Bell’s campaign and a major donor in a highly expensive and bitterly contentious primary battle that revolved around Bell’s anti-Israel views and the Gaza war.
President Bush has been one of Israel’s most vocal critics of AIPAC in recent months. Members of the group have called the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas an “Israeli campaign of ethnic cleansing” and introduced resolutions calling for de-escalation and a ceasefire. Just 2 weeks Following the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel.
Asked about Biden’s thoughts on Bush’s declaration that he would challenge AIPIAC, White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre said the president condemns such “divisive” and “inflammatory” statements.
“The president has always been very clear, and most recently after the assassination attempt on the former president, about refraining from political rhetoric and the importance of doing so,” Jean-Pierre said at his regular press conference on Wednesday. “What’s important is that we are very careful about what we say. This kind of rhetoric is inflammatory, divisive and very unhelpful.”
“We will continue to condemn any political speech of that nature,” she continued, “so it’s important that we be careful about what we say and how we say it, but this type of inflammatory and divisive language has no place in our political debate.”
Bush’s primary defeat on Tuesday came four years after she defeated former Rep. Lacy Clay, a moderate Democrat who had represented the district for 20 years.
She is the second Squad member to lose a primary this term in a race that focused in part on Israel’s war with Hamas. Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.), who has been a vocal opponent of Israel in recent months, also lost his reelection bid in the primary.
