Topline
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) on Saturday joined a growing list of lawmakers to call on beleaguered Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) to resign in the wake of his indictment this week on criminal bribery charges, the New Jersey senator’s second indictment in recent years.
Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) has faced calls from a string of Democrats to resign.
Key Facts
McCarthy argued the allegations against Menendez—including that he accepted gold bars, a luxury car and hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash in return for political favors—were “very damaging,” The Hill reported.
New Jersey’s Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy also urged Menendez to resign, arguing the allegations are “so serious that they compromise” Menendez’ ability to effectively serve his term in the senate.
A duo of New Jersey representatives also pushed for Menendez’ resignation, including Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-N.J.), who called the allegations “serious,” and Rep. Andy Kim (D-N.J.), who wrote on X that “no one in America is above the law” (Kim also announced on Saturday he will challenge for Menendez’s senate seat in 2024).
Sen. John Fetterman (D-Penn.) reiterated those calls on X, writing “he cannot continue to wield influence over national policy, especially given the serious and specific nature of the allegations,” while Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) called the charges “shocking” and “the most profound betrayal of his oath of office” if the charges are true.
Rep. Dean Phillips (D-Minn.) on Friday told CNN’s Manu Raju he believes Menendez should resign, adding he was “appalled” while calling on Democrats in Congress to “absolutely” push him to step down.
News Peg
Menendez, a three-term senator and the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, was charged by federal prosecutors on Friday with conspiracy to commit bribery, conspiracy to commit honest services fraud and conspiracy to commit extortion under color of official right, for allegedly taking bribes from three business associates. According to the indictment, Menendez took roughly $500,000 in cash, as well as gold bars, a Mercedes-Benz and home mortgage payments in exchange for political favors to the associates, including through his alleged interference in a state investigation into one of the associates—Menendez vehemently denied the allegations, calling the indictment an “active smear campaign of anonymous sources and innuendos.”
Key Background
The indictment was Menendez’ second since taking office in 2006, following a 2015 indictment in which he was accused of taking bribes from an ophthalmologist, who allegedly gave him $1 million in gifts and campaign contributions. Menendez also denied those charges, including eight counts of bribery and three counts of honest services fraud, while his bribery trial ended in 2017 with a hung jury. Menendez was acquitted of 11 of the 18 charges in 2018, while the remaining were dismissed. He was re-elected to a third term by a 54% vote later that year.
Further Reading
New Jersey Sen. Menendez Indicted Over Alleged Bribes—Including Gold Bars And A Luxury Car (Forbes)
New Jersey Governor Calls On Sen. Menendez To Resign Following Bribery Indictment (Forbes)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/brianbushard/2023/09/23/bipartisan-calls-for-menendezs-resignation-grow-speaker-mccarthy-joins-new-jersey-democrats/