Sen. Bob Menendez, DN.J., on Tuesday denied new bribery charges against him involving Qatar and rejected calls from his Senate colleagues for him to resign in remarks on the floor.
Last week, a federal grand jury issued a second indictment against Menendez, alleging that he helped a New Jersey developer obtain a multimillion-dollar investment from a Qatari-linked company by making a series of statements supporting the country. Menendez is also accused of exchanging text messages with the developer about the alleged plan.
Menendez vehemently denied the new allegations in a nearly 20-minute speech on the Senate floor, in which he maintained his innocence and urged his colleagues not to rush to judgment before he has had a chance to explain himself in court.
In his speech, Menendez denounced the “outrageous” allegations against him that led to growing calls from colleagues for his resignation.
“The United States Attorney’s Office does not prosecute, it prosecutes,” he said. “They seek victory, not justice.”
Menendez argued that he had advocated for the business to come to New Jersey as part of his duties as a senator. He acknowledged his positive statements about Qatar and Egypt, but stressed that he has expressed his criticism of those countries and their leaders when he “felt they were not meeting their international obligations.”
“This give and take, this carrot and stick, this banter and reward is the essence of diplomacy,” he said. “It’s a job we’re all involved in every day as part of our duties in the Senate.”
Menendez denied government allegations that he and his wife used his influence to pocket hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes, including cash and gold bullion, and said his innocence would be proven at trial.
“There is no evidence of giving or receiving cash and gold bars,” he said. “In fact, there has been and will be at trial a full explanation of what the truth is about these matters, a truth that proves I am completely innocent of the charges.”
He accused the government of seeking “to use baseless speculation, not facts, to create the connective tissue to substantiate the allegations” and said he would not resign in light of the allegations.
“I will not stand aside and allow these things to happen in the name of political expediency,” he said. “I never took the easy way out – I never did, I never will and I won’t now. I just asked that justice be allowed to take its course.”
The new indictment came months later Menendez and his wife, Nadine, were charged with bribery for allegedly accepting large sums of money in exchange for using the senator’s influence to enrich three New Jersey businessmen and allegedly benefit the Egyptian government.
Menendez was hit with additional charges in October accusing him of accepting bribes from a foreign government and of “providing sensitive US government information and taking other steps that covertly aided the government of Egypt.”
He, his wife and the businessmen have pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Menendez resigned as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee after being charged with bribery in September, but remains a member of the commission.
Asked Tuesday when he would make the decision to run for re-election, Menendez replied: “I haven’t decided yet. The last time I ran I declared in March, so I have a little time.”
Menendez also said he would continue to monitor classified briefings.
“I choose to attend one when I think it will be of value to me in terms of decision-making,” he said. “When I don’t think it’s going to have value, I don’t have it. And that’s how I’ve always done it, and that’s how I continue to do it.”
Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., renewed his calls for Menendez’s expulsion from the Senate following the latest allegations against the senator.
On Tuesday, Fetterman sarcastically called Menendez’s speech “a portrait of courage.”
“I mean, I don’t know why this fool is still here. You know, if they’ve kicked Santos out, how can we keep him?” he asked, referring to the expelled Agent. George Santos, RN.Y. “I don’t get it. I’ve been calling for months now, you know, we have to crack him.”