How the Menendez verdict undercuts a core GOP talking point
The New Jersey senator is the latest Democrat to face criminal action from the Biden administration. Someone should tell congressional Republicans.
First Things First
Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) was convicted on all 16 counts in his federal corruption trial this afternoon. He became the first sitting member of Congress in US history to be convicted of conspiracy by a public official to act as a foreign agent.
The verdict, which concluded a 64-day trial that included more than three days of jury deliberations, is the latest refutation of claims from congressional Republicans that the Biden Justice Department is weaponized against former Donald Trump and law-abiding conservatives.
In fact, US District Court Judge Aileen Cannon dismissed the federal criminal case in Florida against former President Donald Trump for allegedly mishandling classified documents after his presidency in a ruling that determined the appointment of Special Counsel Jack Smith was unconstitutional. The future of the criminal trial over Trump’s alleged attempts to overturn the result of the 2020 presidential election is in jeopardy after the Supreme Court ruled last month that Trump is immune from federal prosecution for certain official acts.
Meanwhile, Hunter Biden, the president’s son, was convicted in June of three federal firearms-related charges stemming from a gun he purchased and possessed in 2018. Biden is the first child of a sitting president to be convicted in a criminal trial and could face prison time. His license to practice law in Washington, DC, was suspended due to the conviction.
The month before, Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas) was indicted on money laundering, bribery and conspiracy charges by a federal grand jury in Texas. The feds allege Cuellar influenced US policy in exchange for nearly $600,000 million in bribes from Azerbaijan and a Mexican commercial government. Cuellar has said he is innocent of all charges.
Menendez was indicted last September on multiple criminal counts of bribery, obstruction of justice and acting as a foreign agent for the governments of Egypt and Qatar. He pleaded not guilty, maintained his innocence and accused the Justice Department of targeting him due to his Latino identity. Menendez’s wife Nadine was also charged with corruption but will be tried separately.
The 70-year-old senator rejected calls from more than 30 Senate Democrats to resign after he was indicted. Following the conviction, 40 senators of the 51-member caucus—including his fellow New Jersey senator Cory Booker and Sens. Sherrod Brown (Ohio) and Jacky Rosen (N.J.), two vulnerable incumbents up for reelection this November—have called on Menendez to resign as of press time.
Before the conviction, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said Menendez had a right to due process and fair trial but expressed disappointment that he failed to live up to the Senate’s standards. He is now calling for Menendez to resign.
Menendez is also up for reelection in his blue state this fall. (President Biden won the state by 16 points in 2020.) After the senator's indictment, Rep. Andy Kim (D-N.J.) announced he would seek to unseat Menendez. Kim won the Democratic primary in June. The three-term congressman is the first Democratic member of Korean descent and would be the first ever in the Senate and the first Asian American male senator in more than a decade.
Menendez announced in March that he would not seek the Democratic nomination and would instead run as an independent. But some viewed the decision as less political and more self-preservation since Menendez could use campaign funds to pay his legal bills.
Gov. Phil Murphy (D-N.J.) said in a statement that the verdict demonstrates that every American is accountable to US laws. He called on Menendez to resign or for the Senate to expel him if he refused to vacate his office. Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.), another incumbent facing reelection in a battleground state, said she would be open to expulsion if Menendez did not voluntarily step aside.
“In the event of a vacancy, I will exercise my duty to make a temporary appointment to ensure the people of New Jersey have the representation they deserve,” Murphy said.
Menendez has served in the Senate since 2006 after more than 13 years of service in the House. He has won reelection three times.
He was the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee but stepped down as chair following the indictment and is a senior Democrat on the Senate Banking Committee.
Menendez was indicted on federal corruption charges in 2015, but the charges were dropped almost three years later after a jury was unable to reach a verdict. The same year, Menendez was reelected to a third term.
His son Rob is a first-term member of the House.
US Attorney for the Southern District of New York Damien Williams told reporters after the verdict was announced that the conviction would end Menendez’s years of selling his office to the highest bidder.
“This case has always been about shocking levels of corruption, hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes in the form of cash, gold bars and Mercedes Benz,” Williams said. “This wasn’t politics as usual. This was politics for profit.”
Menendez has yet to indicate if he will resign but gave the impression he will appeal the verdict, which he said could lead to other senators facing allegations of being a foreign agent.
“I have never violated my public oath,” Menendez said outside the courtroom. “I have never been anything but a patriot of my country and for my country.”
In the Know
The Democratic National Committee launched 16 billboards and a mobile billboard in the Milwaukee area to call out JD Vance, the Republican Ohio senator former President Donald Trump tapped on Monday as his running mate. The billboards tie the Trump-Vance ticket to Project 2025, which the DNC says would provide a roadmap for a second Trump administration to ban abortion, cut taxes even further for rich people and big corporations, slash Social Security and Medicare and undermine democracy. See each of the billboards.
President Biden will announce a new legislative proposal to block corporate landlords who increase rents on existing units by more than five percent from federal tax breaks. The announcement will come during an event this evening with Congressional Black Caucus Chair Steven Horsford (D-Nev.) in Las Vegas and represents the administration’s latest step to address the affordable housing crisis. Read more about the proposal.
Florida Reps. Jared Moskowitz (D) and Matt Gaetz (R) introduced a resolution honoring the former fire department chief who was killed during the attempted assassination of former President Trump on Saturday. Corey Comperatore died while shielding his family from gunfire. The resolution also condemns any form of political violence.
Make me smarter. Did I miss something in this post? Is there something else I should know? Drop me a line at michael@onceuponahill.com or send me a message below to get in touch.
Wednesday happenings
The House and Senate are out.
President Biden will speak at the UnidosUS Annual Conference and participate in a campaign community event in Las Vegas.
Vice President Harris will travel to Kalamazoo, Michigan to speak at a campaign event and participate in a moderated conversation with Olivia Troye, a former Trump administration national security official, and Amanda Stratton, a Michigan mother and former Republican whom the campaign says has a personal reproductive health story to share.
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