Some news consumers might’ve seen headlines this week about Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez facing criminal charges and thought it was old news. But as NBC News reported, those assumptions would be wrong: The New Jersey senator, already accused of having accepted bribes, has been hit with a second superseding indictment.
The new allegations say Menendez made positive statements about Qatar to help a New Jersey developer get a multimillion-dollar investment from a company tied to the country. The developer cited in the indictment is Fred Daibes, who has also been charged in the case. During the time of the discussions in late 2021 into 2022 for the investment in the deal, Menendez allegedly made a number of statements supportive of Qatar.
For those who might benefit from a refresher, let’s revisit our earlier coverage and review how we arrived at this point.
It was in late September when federal prosecutors first indicted Menendez, alleging that the New Jersey Democrat received “hundreds of thousands of dollars” in bribes and used his influence to benefit, among others, the Egyptian government.
Though the senator has denied any wrongdoing, and he pleaded not guilty in court, it was difficult to deny the seriousness of the allegations. According to the Justice Department, Menendez received, among other things, cash, gold bars, payments toward a home mortgage, compensation for a low- or no-show job, and a luxury vehicle. Complicating matters, the longtime lawmaker struggled to present much of a public defense.
It’s one of the reasons why most of Menendez’s Democratic colleagues, and his home state’s Democratic governor, have urged him to resign.
Roughly three weeks later, the senator was indicted again, and those charges accused him of providing sensitive information to the Egyptian government in exchange for bribes. What’s more, prosecutors alleged that Menendez acted as a foreign agent while serving as the chairman of Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
That was in October. Now, the incumbent lawmaker is facing another round of criminal allegations, with prosecutors claiming he took improper actions in support of Qatar as recently as 2021 and 2022.
To reiterate, Menendez has repeatedly insisted that he’s done nothing wrong, and after his second indictment, the senator’s defense attorney characterized the charges as “absurd” and “false.”
Nevertheless, we’re left with a few lingering questions.
1. Will additional senators call for his resignation? According to the latest tally from NBC News, 31 current senators — all Democrats — have called on Menendez to give up his seat. As the criminal charges mount, the pressure will grow on other Senate members to add their names to the list.
2. Will additional senators call for his expulsion? In October, Democratic Sen. John Fetterman became the first sitting senator to raise the prospect of expelling Menendez. “We cannot have an alleged foreign agent in the United States Senate,” the Pennsylvanian said in a statement. “This is not a close call.” Since then, how many other senators have come to the same conclusion? Literally none. The second superseding indictment offers members a fresh opportunity to consider the issue.
3. Will Menendez give up on his re-election campaign? It might seem absurd, but as things stand, the incumbent senator is officially running for a fourth term in the fall. His odds of success are almost comically low — the Democrat’s approval rating was just 8% in one recent poll — leading to speculation that he’ll soon bow out and save himself the embarrassment of failing in an upcoming primary.
Watch this space.
This post updates our related earlier coverage.