UNION CITY, NJ — Calls are being made from both sides of the aisle in Washington, D.C., for Sen. Bob Menendez to resign, following federal investigators seizing more than $480,000 in cash hidden in clothing, closets and a safe, in addition to $100,000 worth of gold bars.
In the face of the bribery indictment unsealed on Friday, Sept. 22, Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman on Saturday, Sept. 23, became the first Democratic senator to call for his resignation. That same day, Rep. Andy Kim of New Jersey announced he would run against Menendez in the state’s Democratic primary for Senate next year, saying he felt compelled to run against him, after the three-term senator and his wife, Nadine, were indicted on sweeping corruption charges.
“This is not something I expected to do,” but I believe New Jersey deserves better, said Kim in a statement on Saturday, Sept. 23. “We cannot jeopardize the Senate or compromise our country’s integrity. I believe it’s time we restore faith in our democracy and that’s why I am stepping up and running for Senate.”
The indictment, the second in eight years for the 69-year-old senator, alleges he used his role as chairperson of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to secretly aid the government of Egypt in exchange for bribes. One of the largest recipients of U.S. military aid, Egypt has received military equipment and grants valued at more than $1 billion a year.
Prosecutors also say that Menendez directly interfered in criminal investigations, including by pushing to install a federal prosecutor in New Jersey that he believed could be influenced in a criminal case against a businessman and associate of the senator. The indictment also says he tried to use his position of power to meddle in a separate criminal investigation by the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office.
On Friday, Sept. 22, Menendez released the following statement to the press: “Those who believe in justice believe in innocence until proven guilty. I intend to continue to fight for the people of New Jersey with the same success I’ve had for the past five decades. This is the same record of success these very same leaders have lauded all along. It is not lost on me how quickly some are rushing to judge a Latino and push him out of his seat. I am not going anywhere.”
Menendez, however, was just as defiant when he spoke in a press conference in Union City on Monday morning, Sept. 25. “The allegations against me are just that: allegations.”
“A cornerstone of the foundation of American Democracy and our justice system is the principle that all people are presumed innocent until proven guilty. All people. I asked for nothing more and deserve nothing less,” he said.
“For 30 years, I have withdrawn thousands of dollars in cash from my personal savings account, which I have kept for emergencies and because of the history of my family facing confiscation in Cuba,” Menendez continued. “These were monies drawn from my personal savings account based on the income I have lawfully derived over those 30 years. I look forward to addressing other issues at trial.”
Menendez has a history of being investigated. In 2006, he was investigated by then U.S. Attorney Chris Christie on suspicion of steering federal funds to a local nonprofit, more than $300,000 in rent on a property he owned from a group that receives federal aid. The investigation was closed in 2011, however, without any charges being filed.
In 2013, a federal investigation revealed that developers of a retail and entertainment complex in the Meadowlands had reportedly been asked to contribute $50,000 to Menendez’s campaign fund for senator, allegedly in return for his helping get permits from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. This accusation was also not pursued.
In 2015, Menendez was indicted for allegedly accepting flights, vacations and legal and campaign donations of more than $600,000 from Dr. Salomon Melgen, who was also indicted. Megen was convicted of health care fraud in 2017, but President Donald Trump commuted his prison sentence. Unike now though, a Republican was the state’s governor and the Senate Democrats’ spending arm spent more than $7 million to help Menendez defeat the indictment and his Republican opponent. But with Democrats targeting the indicted former president, the indictment of Menendez is finding few in his party willing to support the senator.
Many Democrats have called for his resignation.
“This is a sad day for our great state,” said U.S. Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr., a senior member of the House who has served in the New Jersey delegation with Menendez for almost three decades. “The hallmark of our justice system is the presumption of innocence and the senator deserves his day in court. But given the gravity of these charges, I do not believe that Sen. Menendez can continue to carry out the important duties of his office for our state.”
New Jersey’s governor shared his concerns.
“The allegations in the indictment against Sen. Menendez and four other defendants are deeply disturbing,” said Gov. Phil Murphy in a statement on Friday, Sept. 22, in response to the senator’s indictment. “These are serious charges that implicate national security and the integrity of our criminal justice system.
“Under our legal system, Sen. Menendez and the other defendants have not been found guilty and will have the ability to present evidence disputing these charges, and we must respect the process. However, the alleged facts are so serious that they compromise the ability of Sen. Menendez to effectively represent the people of our state. Therefore, I am calling for his immediate resignation.”
Despite growing opposition, Menendez made it clear he was not backing down or stepping down from his seat in the Senate, although he did relinquish his chairmanship of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
“Everything I’ve accomplished I’ve worked for, despite the naysayers and everyone who has underestimated me,” Menendez said. “I recognize this will be the biggest fight yet. But as I have stated throughout this whole process, I firmly believe that, when all the facts are presented, not only will I be exonerated, but I still will be New Jersey’s senior senator.”
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