Cori Bush's husband charged by feds

Cortney Merritts, the husband of former so called "squad" member and Democratic Representative Cori Bush, was charged this week with federal crimes. Prosecutors say he committed wire fraud by lying on applications for pandemic-related loans from the government.

Merritts faces two counts of wire fraud. The charges allege he sent fake applications to the Small Business Administration (SBA) in 2020 and 2021. Through these applications, he received money from the Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program (EIDL) and Paycheck Protection Program (PPP)—government programs meant to help businesses during the COVID-19 crisis—and never paid it back.

According to the indictment, Merritts received an $8,500 EIDL loan in July 2020 for his moving company, Vetted Couriers. He told the SBA his business had six employees and earned $32,000 the year before. But just one day later, he applied again for another EIDL loan, this time for a business called “Courtney Merritts.” He claimed this business had 10 employees and made $53,000. 

Prosecutors also said one of his July 2020 applications was rejected because it was almost the same as an earlier one.

The charges come a year after the Justice Department started investigating his wife, Cori Bush, a Democrat from Missouri, over payments her campaign made to Merritts. Merritts’ lawyer, Justin Gelfand of Margulis Gelfand DiRuzzo & Lambson, said, “Mr. Merritts intends to plead not guilty to the charges.”

He added, “As with any indictment, this is only the government’s version of the story. We look forward to litigating this case in federal court in Washington, D.C.”

Cori Bush lost her seat in Missouri’s 1st District in the 2024 election because of he far-left leaning and her anti-Israel sentiments.

Bush isn’t accused of any crimes in this case, however, in 2023, she faced a Federal Election Commission (FEC) and congressional ethics complaint. The complaint, filed by the Foundation for Accountability and Civic Trust (FACT), said Bush “used campaign funds for personal use” by paying Merritts $60,000 in 2022 for security work. So it seems like she and Merritts were made for each other.

Bush married Merritts in February 2023. At the same time, her campaign was also paying over $225,000 to a St. Louis company called PEACE Security and $50,000 to another guard, Nathaniel Davis, according to FEC records.

Last year, the Justice Department also looked into Bush’s use of funds meant for Congress members and candidates, which she spent on private security. It’s unclear where that investigation stands, and she hasn’t been charged with anything . . . at this time.

But stay tuned.

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