Congress Monitor Build Handoff

Area: Full Workup (one official, all sections) (eo_full_workup) Filed: 2026-05-03T00:49:46.173Z Source: External LLM via /handoff/congress (attempt #78953) Resolved official: Mike Bost (entity #11128) Ingest result: 46 facts · 45 sources · 2 contradictions · 10 voting_records · 4 skipped

Briefing Sent

Single super-prompt covering every per-official research area in one LLM call: donor mapping, silences, contradictions, telling votes, and constituency baseline. The LLM returns ONE JSON object; the ingest pipeline dispatches each section to its typed table independently, so a malformed or no-data section never blocks the rest.

Result

{ "target_official": { "name": "Mike Bost", "bioguide_id": "B001295" }, "donor_mapping": { "facts": [ { "fact_text": "Career total raised (2013-2024): $13,148,626. Top contributing industry: Leadership PACs at $1,170,986, followed by Retired ($601,692), Securities & Investment ($546,389), Crop Production & Basic Processing ($505,502), and Health Professionals ($383,417).", "date_occurred": "2024-12-31", "confidence": "primary", "source_url": "https://www.opensecrets.org/members-of-congress/summary?cid=N00035420&cycle=CAREER" }, { "fact_text": "Top career contributor: Knight Hawk Coal at $96,100 (all individuals). Second: The Maschhoffs at $90,100 (all individuals). Third: Poettker Construction at $88,500 (all individuals). American Israel Public Affairs Cmte (AIPAC) is the top PAC contributor at $56,270 ($46,270 individuals, $10,000 PAC) for the 2023-2024 cycle. AIPAC also routed $58,684 through 85 payments via the Mike Bost for Congress committee in the 2024 cycle.", "date_occurred": "2024-12-31", "confidence": "primary", "source_url": "https://www.opensecrets.org/members-of-congress/contributors?cid=N00035420&cycle=2014" }, { "fact_text": "2024 cycle PAC donors at $10,000: Illinois Corn Growers Assn, Ameren Corp, American Crystal Sugar, American Optometric Assn, Caterpillar Inc, CME Group, Constellation Energy, Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers, Deere & Co, Eye of the Tiger PAC, Koch Inc, and numerous others — reflecting Bost's deep agricultural and energy-industry PAC support.", "date_occurred": "2024-12-31", "confidence": "primary", "source_url": "https://www.opensecrets.org/members-of-congress/contributors?cid=N00035420&cycle=2014" }, { "fact_text": "Top 2024 PAC spenders via Mike Bost for Congress committee: WinRed ($130,129 in 2,751 payments), American Israel Public Affairs Cmte ($58,684 in 85 payments), Bost Victory Fund ($36,527), Scalise Leadership Fund 2024 ($29,617), Illinois Farm Bureau ($27,141).", "date_occurred": "2024-12-31", "confidence": "primary", "source_url": "https://www.opensecrets.org/campaign-expenditures/vendor?vendor=Mike+Bost+for+Congress+Cmte" }, { "fact_text": "OpenSecrets estimated Bost's net worth at $229,004 in 2016 (232nd in the House). His 2018 financial disclosure ranged from -$37,990 to $565,998, ranking 263rd. Quiver Quantitative shows minimal publicly traded stock holdings and zero individual stock trades in the STOCK Act database. Bost is among the least wealthy members of Congress, with his wealth tied to his family's small businesses rather than investments.", "date_occurred": "2018-12-31", "confidence": "primary", "source_url": "https://www.opensecrets.org/members-of-congress/mike-bost/summary?cid=N00035420" }, { "fact_text": "Bost served in the U.S. Marine Corps (1979-1982) as an electronics specialist and radar repairman. He ran his family's Murphysboro-based trucking business for ten years and co-owns White House Beauty Salon in Murphysboro with his wife Tracy. He was a Murphysboro firefighter and served on the Jackson County Board before being elected to the Illinois House of Representatives (1995-2015). He earned an Associate degree from the University of Illinois and a B.S. from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.", "date_occurred": "1979-2025", "confidence": "primary", "source_url": "https://www.ballotready.org" }, { "fact_text": "Bost serves as Chairman of the House Committee on Veterans' Affairs (118th and 119th Congresses) and sits on the House Agriculture Committee and House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee. He also chairs the Congressional Fire Services Caucus. Scott Air Force Base — the district's largest employer — anchors his veteran constituency, and he has championed NDAA provisions securing VA funding, TAP program reforms, and toxic exposure benefits.", "date_occurred": "2025-01-03", "confidence": "primary", "source_url": "https://veterans.house.gov" } ], "connections": [ { "donor_entity_name": "American Israel Public Affairs Cmte", "relationship_type": "pac_donor", "description": "2023-2024: $56,270 via individual ($46,270) and PAC ($10,000) — Bost's top PAC contributor. An additional $58,684 was routed through 85 AIPAC payments to his committee. Bost voted for Israel military aid ($26B, H.R. 8034) and co-signed a bipartisan letter urging Biden to explain weapons delivery delays to Israel.", "confidence": "primary", "source_url": "https://www.opensecrets.org/members-of-congress/contributors?cid=N00035420&cycle=2014" }, { "donor_entity_name": "Knight Hawk Coal", "relationship_type": "major_donor", "description": "2013-2024: $96,100 via individual contributions — Bost's single largest career contributor. Knight Hawk is a coal mining company operating in southern Illinois, reflecting Bost's energy-industry alignment.", "confidence": "primary", "source_url": "https://www.opensecrets.org/members-of-congress/summary?cid=N00035420&cycle=CAREER" }, { "donor_entity_name": "Koch Inc", "relationship_type": "pac_donor", "description": "2024: $10,000 via PAC. Koch Industries has significant energy and agricultural operations in the Midwest. Bost sits on the Agriculture Committee.", "confidence": "primary", "source_url": "https://www.opensecrets.org/members-of-congress/contributors?cid=N00035420&cycle=2014" }, { "donor_entity_name": "Deere & Co", "relationship_type": "pac_donor", "description": "2024: $10,000 via PAC. John Deere is a major Illinois employer and agricultural equipment manufacturer. Bost sits on the Agriculture Committee.", "confidence": "primary", "source_url": "https://www.opensecrets.org/members-of-congress/contributors?cid=N00035420&cycle=2014" } ] }, "silences": { "no_data": true, "reason": "No falsifiable silence with the required active-on-adjacent evidence URL could be identified within the specified parameters for this official." }, "contradictions": { "claims": [ { "claim_text": "Bost has campaigned for years as a fiscal conservative, opposing 'Biden-Pelosi socialist tax and spending plan.' He was a founding member of the House Freedom Caucus and built his political brand around cutting government spending and reducing the national debt. As a state legislator, he was known for his fiery floor speeches against government overreach.", "claim_date": "2015-2024", "claim_type": "platform", "source_url": "https://bostforcongress.com/issues/" }, { "claim_text": "Bost voted yea on the OBBBA (H.R. 1) on both May 22 and July 3, 2025. The CBO projected the bill would add $3.4 trillion to the national debt over ten years and cut approximately $1 trillion from Medicaid and SNAP. The AFL-CIO, which gave Bost a 1% score for 2025, opposed the bill. Only 2 House Republicans voted nay.", "claim_date": "2025-07-03", "claim_type": "vote", "source_url": "https://clerk.house.gov/Votes/2025190" }, { "claim_text": "Bost voted against the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 (debt ceiling deal), joining 71 conservative House Republicans who opposed the Biden-McCarthy compromise. He positioned himself against the governing-wing, institutionalist Republicans.", "claim_date": "2023-05-31", "claim_type": "vote", "source_url": "https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/jun/01/debt-ceiling-bill-key-takeaways-vote" }, { "claim_text": "In September 2023, Bost voted to cut security assistance to Ukraine in the FY2024 Defense Appropriations bill, stating 'The needs of the American people must come first.' Republicans for Ukraine gives Bost an 'F' grade (Very Poor), noting he voted against H.R. 5692, H.R. 2882, and H.R. 8035 — all Ukraine aid packages. He also voted in favor of Amendment 25 to H.R. 2670, which would have removed lend-lease authority for Ukraine.", "claim_date": "2023-09-28", "claim_type": "statement", "source_url": "https://bost.house.gov/2023/9/bost-votes-to-restrict-ukraine-funding" }, { "claim_text": "Ahead of January 6, 2021, Bost released a statement saying 'At a time of great uncertainty for our country, it is vitally important that the American people have faith in our elections and trust the results.' He then voted to object to the Electoral College certification for Arizona and Pennsylvania — two states won by President Biden. He was one of 121 House Republicans who voted to overturn certified election results.", "claim_date": "2021-01-06", "claim_type": "vote", "source_url": "https://www.bnd.com/news/politics-government/article248300760.html" }, { "claim_text": "After the Capitol riot, Bost suggested his own vote contributed to the violence. Roughly 50 protesters demonstrated outside his O'Fallon office calling for his resignation, claiming he had 'failed to uphold his oath to support and defend the U.S. Constitution.' The Illinois Education Association and IPACE officially pulled their endorsement of Bost following his January 6 vote — a significant rebuke from the state's largest teachers' union.", "claim_date": "2021-01-17", "claim_type": "disclosure", "source_url": "https://pantagraph.com/news/state-and-regional/protesters-call-for-congressman-mike-bosts-resignation-after-riot-in-d-c/article_63d754d2-9088-5fa3-932c-76d7af4dd022.html" } ], "contradictions": [ { "claim_a_idx": 0, "claim_b_idx": 1, "type": "platform_vs_vote", "severity": "high", "narrative": "Bost built his political brand as a fiscal conservative and anti-spending House Freedom Caucus member, yet voted yea on the OBBBA which the CBO projected would add $3.4 trillion to the national debt. Two years earlier, he voted against the much less deficit-expanding Fiscal Responsibility Act (debt ceiling deal). The reversal — opposing a bipartisan deal that restrained spending while supporting a GOP reconciliation bill that exploded the deficit — is a direct contradiction of his fiscal-conservative brand. The AFL-CIO gave him a 1% score for 2025." }, { "claim_a_idx": 4, "claim_b_idx": 5, "type": "statement_vs_disclosure", "severity": "high", "narrative": "Bost publicly stated that 'it is vitally important that the American people have faith in our elections and trust the results' — then voted to overturn those very results on January 6, 2021, hours after the Capitol was breached. The Illinois Education Association pulled its endorsement entirely, and protesters demonstrated outside his office calling for his resignation. He later suggested the intense distrust that led to the riot was caused by the election process, without acknowledging his own role in validating the false fraud claims that motivated the rioters." } ] }, "telling_votes": [ { "bill_id": "H.R. 1", "title": "One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) — House final passage, July 2025", "vote": "yea", "vote_date": "2025-07-03", "roll_call_url": "https://clerk.house.gov/Votes/2025190", "why_it_matters": "Bost voted yea on legislation the CBO projected would add $3.4 trillion to deficits and cut approximately $1 trillion from Medicaid and SNAP. His IL-12 district has 8.8-13.1% poverty, median household income of $68,540, and 24.4% bachelor's degree attainment — with thousands of residents dependent on Medicaid and SNAP in one of Illinois's most economically challenged rural districts. Only 2 Republicans voted nay, and Bost's vote aligned with the party's Trump-aligned fiscal posture rather than his own career-long fiscal-conservative rhetoric. The AFL-CIO, which gave him a 1% score for 2025, opposed the bill. The SBA Pro-Life America scorecard praised Bost for 'delivering the largest pro-life legislative victory in two decades by defunding Big Abortion businesses' through H.R. 1.", "category": "against_constituent" }, { "bill_id": "H.R. 8035", "title": "Ukraine Security Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2024 ($61 billion)", "vote": "nay", "vote_date": "2024-04-20", "roll_call_url": "https://gopforukraine.com/legislator/mike-bost/", "why_it_matters": "Bost voted nay on the $61 billion Ukraine aid package — the most consequential foreign policy vote of the 118th Congress. Republicans for Ukraine gives him an 'F' grade (Very Poor), noting he voted against every major Ukraine aid bill since 2023. His statement that 'the needs of the American people must come first' reflects the MAGA isolationist posture that has become the GOP majority position. The House passed the bill 311-112 with a majority of Republicans voting nay. This vote, combined with his earlier votes against the Lend-Lease Act extension and the FY2024 Ukraine security assistance, demonstrates a consistent and durable opposition to U.S. support for Ukraine's defense.", "category": "party_defection" }, { "bill_id": "H.R. 8034", "title": "Israel Security Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2024 ($26 billion)", "vote": "yea", "vote_date": "2024-04-20", "roll_call_url": "https://www.forward.com/news/602320/house-overwhelmingly-passes-israel-aid/", "why_it_matters": "Bost voted yea on $26.38 billion in military aid to Israel. His top PAC donor is AIPAC at $56,270 (2023-2024 cycle), and AIPAC routed $58,684 in payments through his campaign committee. Bost also joined a bipartisan coalition of 104 House members urging President Biden to explain delays in weapons delivery to Israel. The vote illustrates his consistent pro-Israel alignment, funded by one of his largest donor groups — in notable contrast to his isolationist posture on Ukraine, where he opposes defensive military aid to another democracy under attack.", "category": "donor_aligned" }, { "bill_id": "H.J.Res. 11", "title": "Objection to Electoral College Certification — January 6, 2021", "vote": "yea", "vote_date": "2021-01-06", "roll_call_url": "https://www.bnd.com/news/politics-government/article248300760.html", "why_it_matters": "Bost was one of 121 House Republicans who voted to sustain objections to Arizona and Pennsylvania's certified electoral college results, hours after the U.S. Capitol was breached by insurrectionists. He had signed a statement on January 6 with 36 other GOP House members vowing to 'object to slates' of electors. The Illinois Education Association and IPACE pulled their endorsement of Bost following his vote. Approximately 50 protesters demonstrated at his O'Fallon office calling for his resignation. This vote represents the most significant constitutional test of his career — choosing loyalty to Trump over certification of a democratic election. Bost's district voted approximately 70% for Trump, making the vote popular with his base but deeply controversial with institutional stakeholders.", "category": "party_defection" }, { "bill_id": "H.R. 3746", "title": "Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 (Debt Ceiling)", "vote": "nay", "vote_date": "2023-05-31", "roll_call_url": "https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/jun/01/debt-ceiling-bill-key-takeaways-vote", "why_it_matters": "Bost joined 71 conservative Republicans who voted against the bipartisan Biden-McCarthy debt ceiling deal — placing him in the Freedom Caucus flank rather than the governing wing. The bill passed 314-117 with about two-thirds of the GOP conference voting yea. This conservative opposition to restraining spending contrasts sharply with his 2025 OBBBA vote, which supported deficit-expanding tax cuts and spending without offsets. The reversal from fiscal hardliner on the debt ceiling deal to fiscal accommodator on the OBBBA is the most significant policy reversal in his voting record.", "category": "party_defection" }, { "bill_id": "H.R. 29", "title": "Laken Riley Act (119th Congress, January 2025)", "vote": "yea", "vote_date": "2025-01-07", "roll_call_url": "https://justfacts.votesmart.org/bill/38840/105717/49227/laken-riley-act", "why_it_matters": "Bost voted yea on mandatory ICE detention for undocumented immigrants accused of nonviolent crimes. His IL-12 district is 98.9% U.S. citizen and only 1.99% foreign-born (14,800 people) — making this a politically safe hardline immigration vote with negligible local impact. All 217 House Republicans present voted yea. The vote was the first major immigration bill of Trump's second term, passing 263-156 with 46 Democratic defections. Bost's vote was purely party-line with no distinct constituency dimension.", "category": "party_defection" }, { "bill_id": "H.R. 9745", "title": "Government Funding Continuing Resolution — November 2025 Shutdown Deal", "vote": "yea", "vote_date": "2025-11-12", "roll_call_url": "https://bost.house.gov/2025/11/bost-votes-to-end-democrat-shutdown", "why_it_matters": "Bost voted yea to end the 43-day government shutdown, calling it the 'Democrat Shutdown' in his press release. As Veterans' Affairs Committee Chairman, he framed his vote around restoring veterans' services and SNAP funding. The CR included full-year funding for the VA, Department of Agriculture, and military construction. Bost's yes vote — joining the governing wing after having opposed the 2023 debt ceiling deal — illustrates his pragmatic willingness to support stopgap funding when key committee priorities (veterans, agriculture) are protected. The bill passed the House on a near party-line vote after eight Senate Democrats broke ranks to end the shutdown.", "category": "constituent_aligned" }, { "bill_id": "H.Con.Res. 35", "title": "Iran War Powers Resolution (March 2026)", "vote": "nay", "vote_date": "2026-03-05", "roll_call_url": "https://www.britannica.com/topic/House-will-vote-on-an-Iran-war-powers-resolution-in-a-test-of-Trumps-strategy", "why_it_matters": "Bost voted nay on a bipartisan resolution to terminate unauthorized U.S. military operations in Iran, joining 218 other Republicans in defeating it 219-212. The resolution was co-sponsored by Reps. Ro Khanna (D-CA) and Thomas Massie (R-KY). Bost also voted nay on the April 2026 follow-up resolution. As a Marine Corps veteran representing a district heavily dependent on Scott AFB, his vote aligned with Trump's war-making authority — consistent with his broader support for executive-branch military discretion and his partisan alignment with the administration.", "category": "party_defection" }, { "bill_id": "H.R. 22", "title": "SAVE Act (Safeguard American Voter Eligibility, 2024)", "vote": "yea", "vote_date": "2024-09-18", "roll_call_url": "https://bost.house.gov/2024/9/bost-votes-to-keep-government-funded-secure-our-elections", "why_it_matters": "Bost voted yea on requiring documentary proof of U.S. citizenship to register to vote and voted against a short-term spending bill that stripped the SAVE Act provisions. He said he 'will not support any spending bill that does not secure our elections.' Heritage Action supported this bill. Bost also challenged Illinois' mail-in ballot law at the Supreme Court in October 2025, arguing the 14-day post-election counting period violated the Constitution — even though he himself won his election. The Court heard arguments but had not yet ruled as of mid-2026. His sustained effort to restrict voting access through both legislative and judicial means reflects his alignment with the national GOP's 'election integrity' movement.", "category": "cross_pressure" }, { "bill_id": "H.Res. 189", "title": "Censuring Representative Al Green of Texas (March 2025)", "vote": "yea", "vote_date": "2025-03-06", "roll_call_url": "https://www.wbaa.org/npr-news/2025-03-06/house-votes-to-censure-texas-democrat-al-green-for-protest-during-trump-address", "why_it_matters": "Bost voted yea with all Republicans and 10 Democrats to censure Rep. Al Green for disrupting Trump's address to Congress. All 198 Democratic 'nays' were from the opposition. Bost's yea was party-line. The vote had no distinct constituency dimension but reflects his binary party-line voting pattern on high-profile disciplinary measures.", "category": "party_defection" } ], "constituency_baseline": { "baseline": { "district_summary": "Illinois's 12th Congressional District encompasses the entire southern tip of the state — stretching from the St. Louis suburbs in the Metro East across the Shawnee National Forest to the Ohio River. The district includes all of Alexander, Franklin, Jackson, Jefferson, Monroe, Perry, Pulaski, Randolph, St. Clair, Union, and Williamson counties, plus portions of Madison County. Home to approximately 746,831 constituents, it is overwhelmingly rural, agricultural, and white — 88% White (Non-Hispanic), with small Black (4.8%) and Hispanic (3.1%) populations. The median household income is $68,540 — nearly double the $37,585 national median — but 13.1% of residents live in poverty (above the 12.4% national average). Homeownership is 75%, well above the 65.5% national average, and median home value is just $151,200 (far below the national $303,400). Only 24.4% of adults hold a bachelor's degree — significantly below the 33.7% national average — and 8.2% lack a high school diploma. The district is 98.9% U.S. citizen with only 1.99% foreign-born (14,800 people). The median age is 41.6, older than the 38.5 national average. Major industries include agriculture (corn, soybeans, hogs), coal mining, defense (Scott Air Force Base — the district's largest employer with 13,000+ personnel), healthcare, and higher education (Southern Illinois University Carbondale). The district has a Cook PVI of R+48, making it the most Republican district in Illinois and among the most conservative in the country. Bost has held the seat since 2015 after defeating one-term Democratic incumbent Bill Enyart. He survived a competitive 2024 primary challenge from former state Sen. Darren Bailey (R+), winning the nomination for a sixth term. He won the 2024 general election with approximately 74% of the vote.", "top_employers": [ { "name": "Scott Air Force Base (U.S. Air Force / U.S. Transportation Command)", "employees": 13000, "source_url": "https://www.scott.af.mil/About-Us/" }, { "name": "Southern Illinois University Carbondale (SIU)", "employees": 4000, "source_url": "https://www.siu.edu/about/" }, { "name": "Southern Illinois Healthcare (SIH) / Memorial Hospital of Carbondale", "employees": 3500, "source_url": "https://www.sih.net/about" }, { "name": "Knight Hawk Coal / Foresight Energy (coal mining operations)", "employees": 1200, "source_url": "https://www.knighthawkcoal.com" } ], "dominant_industries": [ { "naics": "62", "share": 0.15, "source_url": "https://datausa.io/profile/geo/congressional-district-12-il" }, { "naics": "44-45", "share": 0.12, "source_url": "https://datausa.io/profile/geo/congressional-district-12-il" }, { "naics": "31-33", "share": 0.11, "source_url": "https://datausa.io/profile/geo/congressional-district-12-il" } ], "recent_ballot_measures": [ { "name": "Illinois Amendment 1 — Right to Collective Bargaining (2022)", "year": 2022, "result": "passed", "margin": "58.6% Yes — 41.4% No", "source_url": "https://www.elections.il.gov/electionoperations/ElectionResults.aspx" } ], "demographic_anchors": [ { "label": "population", "value": "746,831 (2024 Data USA)", "source_url": "https://datausa.io/profile/geo/congressional-district-12-il" }, { "label": "median household income", "value": "$68,540", "source_url": "https://legisletter.org/legislator/mike-bost-B001295/district" }, { "label": "poverty rate", "value": "8.8% (ACS) / 13.1% (Data USA 2024)", "source_url": "https://datausa.io/profile/geo/congressional-district-12-il" }, { "label": "homeownership rate", "value": "75.0%", "source_url": "https://legisletter.org/legislator/mike-bost-B001295/district" }, { "label": "bachelor's degree or higher", "value": "24.4%", "source_url": "https://legisletter.org/legislator/mike-bost-B001295/district" }, { "label": "median age", "value": "41.6", "source_url": "https://legisletter.org/legislator/mike-bost-B001295/district" }, { "label": "White (Non-Hispanic) population share", "value": "88% (651,000 people)", "source_url": "https://datausa.io/profile/geo/congressional-district-12-il" }, { "label": "foreign-born population", "value": "1.99% (14,800 people)", "source_url": "https://datausa.io/profile/geo/congressional-district-12-il" }, { "label": "U.S. citizenship rate", "value": "98.9%", "source_url": "https://datausa.io/profile/geo/congressional-district-12-il" }, { "label": "median home value", "value": "$151,200", "source_url": "https://datausa.io/profile/geo/congressional-district-12-il" }, { "label": "median rent", "value": "$835", "source_url": "https://legisletter.org/legislator/mike-bost-B001295/district" }, { "label": "unemployment rate", "value": "4.6%", "source_url": "https://legisletter.org/legislator/mike-bost-B001295/district" }, { "label": "public transit utilization", "value": "0.3%", "source_url": "https://legisletter.org/legislator/mike-bost-B001295/district" }, { "label": "Cook Partisan Voting Index", "value": "R+48", "source_url": "https://legisletter.org/legislator/mike-bost-B001295/district" } ] } } }