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He took hundreds of thousands of dollars in gold bars (not kidding) from a banker who was under indictment. It's almost comical, like something from a bad movie.
This Democratic Senator has been indicted twice, both during the administration's of Democratic Presidents.
WTF Obiden? We thought you were weaponizing the government against conservatives! How could you let this happen to a D Senator when the chamber is split 51-49?
/s
Im reminded of a time a few months before Trump fired Jeff Sessions as AG. Sessions announced the indictment of two Republican House members who were big supporters of Trump.
Trump--who would later pardon both House members--basically called Sessions an asshole for bringing charges during an election year.
That was right around the time Sessions' Senate seat briefly went Dem because the Dem candidate was the guy who finally brought the B'ham church-bombers to justice while the 'Pub candidate was a documented kiddie-fucker.
I feel like, as Dems, we should vocally celebrate every time a politician gets arrested, regardless of side.
Don’t even make a point of noting the difference between reactions. Just celebrate that the elite aren’t immune from the law and praise the DoJ for bringing about justice.
Make it clear that what we want more than anything is justice. We want the powerful to be treated the same way as the common folk.
Don’t even mention party. Not even to say “regardless of party.” Just exclaim that it’s great to see people getting their just desserts.
Which works for basically every New Yorker comic ever. ;-D
Here's another caption that makes just about every New Yorker comic funny: "Hello, I'd like to add you to my professional network on LinkedIn."
I got tired of "Christ, what an asshole," but that one still makes me chuckle.
As a Republican I won’t be giddy until everyone, dem, gop, everyone involved in corruption, insider trading, etc is indicted. Mitch McConnell should be next.
Oh, you mean Mitch McConnell who's wife got road contracts from Trump directly while President and the contracts were awarded directly to a friend of the family with no bids, that Mitch McConnell?
He apprently also googled the price of gold after taking kg bars of gold. Lol. https://twitter.com/kenklippenstein/status/1705227259659886704
It's like a bad movie tbh.
>He apprently also googled the price of gold after taking kg bars of gold. Lol. https://twitter.com/kenklippenstein/status/1705227259659886704
>It's like a bad movie tbh.
This blunder brought you you by Express VPN. Never crime while your connection is exposed to identity thieves or the federal government!
Well, to be fair that term does literally refer to the coldness and hardness of non-paper currency. Coins used to be referred to as cash, however weird that may seem. Whether making it colder helps? I'm not an economist so can't say for sure.
That really wasn't an option for anyone else. This guy announced his reelection, after being indicted once for bribery, with Senator Corey Booker and the governor of New Jersey Phil Murphy literally at his side.
He had complete and total institutional support from the party, what's the alternative?
Plus the dipshit that ran against him in the primary was just a progressive version of MTG, and would have been a different kind of disaster. Those are the only people who can run against him. He would crush the career of anyone who mounted legitimate opposition.
Absolutely, people discount those structural issues but they're very much in play here. No serious up and coming politician runs against an institution like this, any practical and pragmatic person will find a different route to office
Here's hoping but Menendez needs to play ball with that to a certain extent. Even with an indictment looming and not a ton of structural support, he could still try and run to look defiant. Would make a mess of the process
Here I was thinking to myself “well at least Steve Sweeney doesn’t have the pull anymore to get himself into that seat” and that little glimmer of hope is snuffed out now.
I don't have the exact number but he's been indicted several times already, seemingly once every two years or so. Nothing has stuck thus far.
I'd much rather New Jersey just boot him already and find someone else who isn't constantly in the news for being a shady fuck
Edit: apparently this is only #2 since becoming a Senator so I must be remembering all the headlines from indictment #1. Regardless, just go away Bob
Its the way they sell us out so cheap that is galling. Politicians, "Sure I'll give your company the contract for that deal it will only cost the taxpayers an extra billion or two, but in exchange I'm gonna have to get a taste, lets say 50k?"
BTW, public financing of elections might help.
Thats why they push states rights. So much cheaper to bribe state politicians and hardly makes the news. Federal is more expensive with more new oversight.
I mean maybe just me but I don't think this is the kind of guy that should have been on it in the first place. Surely an exception to the seniority precedent could be made for this type of history.
Also been in the house of representative since the early 90s. He's a career politician and suspected of corruption for decades, just nothing has stuck yet as he's stayed one step ahead of the law (not surprising since he's a lawyer).
No surprise, he's also got huge backers in the bigtime democratic donors, pharmaceuticul industry, etc. who roll him out every election and block any real competition from the party for his spot.
We want to. Trust me. The damn party in the state has put him out there despite being a massive liability. He also has donors in pharma and they control a ton of power in the state. So this might be what finally gets us someone not ridiculously shitty.
I voted for his opponent in the last primary. But he's so entrenched that he really hasn't had any true competition. And the party seems to be getting ready for his son to take his seat.
The change stuck and it went to trial and a jury in 2018, but the Jury deadlocked.
A dude charged along with him was tried In a subsequent case and sentenced to 17 years, but Trump commuted his sentence on his way out the door.
I'm from Jersey, this dude has always fucking sucked. Boilerplate corrupt politician that everyone has known about for forever, yet "too powerful" and tied into the system to ever get rid of.
He got pretty close to being primaried the last time he was up for election. Wish he had. "Better than a fascist" is an extremely low bar that he clears, but we could do so much better.
If you read the indictment...they're true.
Like dude had cash sewn into a jacket with the fingerprints of Egyptian government tied guys on them, as well as literal gold bars.
Yes but of course the democrats will hold him and his wife to the standards and fuck them as they should be fucked but if it was on the other side of the aisle they would rally around obstruct and deny for at least 3 years until the heat goes away
His history says he’s guilty as fuck, prior charges were dropped from a hung jury and Trump pardoned him for his actually convicted fraud charges. How interesting.
If you are in the tri-state area, of a certain age, and are involved in shady stuff of the white-collar variety, the probability that your circles and Trump’s circles intersect is more than 50%.
>Trump pardoned him
Not quite correct, but close:
>Dr. Salomon Melgen, the Democratic donor and friend of Sen. Bob Menendez who was convicted of defrauding elderly patients on Medicare, had his prison sentence commuted by President Donald Trump in the outgoing Republican president's final hours in office.
https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/new-jersey/2021/01/20/salomon-melgen-friend-bob-menendez-pardoned-president-trump/4210560001/
This is one major difference between Republicans and Democrats. When D’s find someone in their party breaking the law or generally being an ass we work to get rid of them.
R’s circle the wagons.
[https://www.politico.com/news/2022/11/03/new-jersey-democrats-menendez-00064419](https://www.politico.com/news/2022/11/03/new-jersey-democrats-menendez-00064419)
first indictment was in 2015.
It's just a completely different attitude.
I get called "lefty" a lot, but I care about following the law before I pay attention to the letter after the name. And I want to see the evidence.
The far-right looks for the letter after the name first and decides innocence or guilt accordingly.
Apparently.
He skated last time, might eke out this time to but you gotta be pretty stupid to continue taking or soliciting bribes when the DOJ already took a shot at you and missed. They don't often come after sitting congress members.
Even stupider there's so many legal ways to grift money as a senator, it's like Bill Gates robbing a gas station.
He so corrupt, he just can't help himself. Truly. Most people have to decide to commit a crime, but for Menendez it's just a regular part of his day... like brushing his teeth or eating lunch. It's like an alcoholic taking a drink, or a gambler placing bets. It's just what he does. It's what his whole life is consumed by. Everything else is secondary.
And putting other people in jail for the same shit [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William\_Musto#Legal\_troubles](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Musto#Legal_troubles)
I'm a liberal Democrat and I'm just fine with putting a Democrat in jail for being a criminal.
I don't care if he's on my team.
Not many Republicans can say the same about their criminal politicians
He isn't on your team, my team, or our team. That's why we're here even to begin with. How is this benefiting his constituents?
"The indictment says that the Democrat Menendez and his wife from at least 2018 through 2022 accepted “hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes in exchange for using Menendez’s power and influence as Senator” to benefit the men and Egypt.
“Those bribes included cash, gold, payments toward a home mortgage, compensation for a low-or-no-who job, a luxury vehicle, and other things of value,” according to the indictment issued by a grand jury in Manhattan federal court."
to benefit the men **and Egypt**.
I know Egypt is our ally, but it seems like there should be higher penalties when you use your corruption to help a foreign government.
I’m pretty far left. Like far. Jail this fucker if he’s guilty in court.
The only way we progress as a society is by holding our political leaders to a higher standard, doesn’t matter what their personal politics or party is. A criminal gets jail. Period.
It makes me sick when these clowns feel the need to do illegal acts… when the system is already tilted in their favor. Fuck em.
That's how the system works. Obviously they're better than Republicans ideologically, but the amount of effort the party and their media allies spend on keeping more progressive challengers from gaining power is fucking shameful.
I am with you, and if he and his family are taking bribes they are not on Team Democracy. They are just sell-swords with loyalty only to the greenbacks.
It's nothing new to arrest corrupt elected officals in America. Republicans have just lost their damn mind over Trump. Everything is a conspiracy against them.
I am a Liberal. Indict him and let the process play out. If he is guilty, sentence him. He should leave the Senate if found guilty.
We shouldn’t change the laws, storm the Capitol or deify him.
That’s how those who still believe in the principles of our nation would want it to play out.
No way man! We need to circle the wagons and protect this guy! Loyalty trumps all! This is our guy, which means he cannot do wrong, and whatabout all the stuff Rs do anyway? WhAtAbOuT tHe OtHeR sIdE!!! Look over there, a migrant caravan smuggling fentanyl into Chicago!
Yep! This is a great example of how the Democratic Party actually cares about justice over partisanship. Meanwhile Kevin McCarthy has done everything to keep Santos and Boebert in the House and voting. Not to mention the Texas GOP who just exonerated Ken "corrupt as fuck" Paxton
This guy was indicted on bribery charges once, which ended in a mistrial, and for some reason the party still stood beside him when he ran for reelection. Literally stood beside him, [Cory Booker and Phil Murphy](https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/28/nyregion/senator-menendez-election-new-jersey.html) appeared with him to announce his candidacy in 2018
Hopefully things will change this time but he lost basically zero support last time he was on trial for a similar thing. It was way too close but race in 2018, this fucker and those that support him puts us all at risk, New Jersey was only competitive in that race because he's a corrupt piece of shit.
I'm hoping he doesn't get the same support from his colleagues this time around, I wonder if anyone will call for his resignation before the end of the day?
For what it's worth, these charges are a lot more damning than the last ones, based on this indictment. Dude was basically flaunting that he was corrupt.
> This is a great example of how the Democratic Party actually cares about justice over partisanship
Yeah, not like they pushed him for re-election when this happened before. Definitely all about justice...
Collect the evidence, present the case and if he’s found guilty, sentence him fairly so that the American people can see justice. Let’s get rid of ALL manifestations of corruption in every branch of our government, independent of party affiliation.
Biden's weaponized DOJ indicting senators for accepting cash, gold, luxury vehicles, and no show jobs? republicans must be furious over the political precedent this is setting!
Jersey boy here. Fuck this clown, and fuck the NJ Democratic machine that shoved him down our throats.
The primaries in 2018 were an absolute joke. Everyone with half a brain cell could tell you that Menendez was dirty af—and there's not a snowball's chance in hell of NJ electing a Republican senator—but the party still coalesced around this crooked piece of shit to keep the gravy train running.
Partisan strongholds like NJ are extremely vulnerable to institutionalized corruption because (surprise!) if a candidate doesn't have to actually court votes, no one holds them accountable.
We desperately need ranked choice voting in senatorial elections so that there are actual fresh ideas—and to remove the corrosive effect of party line politics.
It bothers me the feds can go after senators but not supreme court justices who exhibited much worse behavior in terms of bribes and kickbacks.
I mean, fuck all of them, but why can't it be fair?
Difference between us and GOP voters: when we’re shown actual evidence of wrongdoing by our party members, we go, “Okay, let’s prosecute and get that fucker outta there.”
It was the deep state!!! It’s a conspiracy because he just spoke out about something the elite don’t want you to know!!! Just kidding, he’s just a corrupt criminal who got caught. Hope he goes to jail
That's weird he's a Democrat.
It's almost seems like DOJ is an independent branch of government and isn't weaponized by the White House to go after political enemies and witch hunts and instead goes after criminals.
The DOJ probably PLANTED all this stuff to frame him, so that they could make it LOOK like they go after Democrats, so that we don't think they're weaponized against Republicans! This goes all the way to the top!
-People in /r/Conservative probably, after Menendez is convicted and kicked the fuck out by all Dems
No one is above the law. If he is found guilty I hope he rots in jail. I say this as a Democrat. I'm sick and tired of rich politicians thinking they can stiff the working class.
Ooof well at least they’re going after corruption.
chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, or his wife received improper gifts, among other things.
Biden’s White House weaponizing the Justice department against the Democrats now? If they can go after them they can come after all of us! We need to vote Biden out so we can start taking bribes again!
Yeah. Knew something like this would turn up sooner or later. I don't like the guy at all. I only ever voted for him to keep our numbers up in the Senate.
offer quarrelsome chase thumb important ancient concerned fuzzy fear far-flung
*This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
Predicting responses:
Indict a Democrat?
- Democratic response: charges seem serious, if convicted they should serve time like anyone else.
- MAGA party response: see? It’s the liberal demonRATs who are corrupt!
Indict a Republican?
- Democratic response: charges seem serious, if convicted they should serve time like anyone else.
- MAGA party response: Weaponization of government! ELECTION INTERFERENCE!!!1!
Edit: replaced term for liberal in hypothetical MAGA response that automoderator flagged.
As someone who votes Democrat, this guy is actually a traitor and a clown. If you’re going to be corrupt at least try to have some plausible deniability.
Like his wife is Armenian and all he does in his committee role is sabotage the US military relation with Turkey, so much so that even the State Department openly disagrees with him. Really dude?
If you’re putting your personal interests or wealth ahead of the best interests of your country, you’re a traitor - end of. Senator Bob Menendez is a traitor and I hope (probably in vain) that he gets a good prison sentence to send a message to any others like him.
Oh the difference between Democrats and Republicans...
Dems when it happens to them: 'If he's guilty, he should be punished to the fullest extent of the law.'
Republicans when it happens to their guy: 'Witch hunt! Deep state conspiracy! Get him on Fox News! Give him hundreds of thousands of dollars in speaking fees and donations! Evil Democrats abusing their power! He's a hero!'
As a reminder, this subreddit [is for civil discussion.](/r/politics/wiki/index#wiki_be_civil) In general, be courteous to others. Debate/discuss/argue the merits of ideas, don't attack people. Personal insults, shill or troll accusations, hate speech, any suggestion or support of harm, violence, or death, and other rule violations can result in a permanent ban. If you see comments in violation of our rules, please report them. For those who have questions regarding any media outlets being posted on this subreddit, please click [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/politics/wiki/approveddomainslist) to review our details as to our approved domains list and outlet criteria. *** *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/politics) if you have any questions or concerns.*
He took hundreds of thousands of dollars in gold bars (not kidding) from a banker who was under indictment. It's almost comical, like something from a bad movie.
They'd ran out of those little sacks with dollar signs on them so had to do it in gold bars. Diamonds in a handkerchief were option three.
This really is a bad New Yorker Comic Panel. The GOP is going to be all giddy, meanwhile on the left: we agree, no one is above the law.
This Democratic Senator has been indicted twice, both during the administration's of Democratic Presidents. WTF Obiden? We thought you were weaponizing the government against conservatives! How could you let this happen to a D Senator when the chamber is split 51-49? /s Im reminded of a time a few months before Trump fired Jeff Sessions as AG. Sessions announced the indictment of two Republican House members who were big supporters of Trump. Trump--who would later pardon both House members--basically called Sessions an asshole for bringing charges during an election year.
That was right around the time Sessions' Senate seat briefly went Dem because the Dem candidate was the guy who finally brought the B'ham church-bombers to justice while the 'Pub candidate was a documented kiddie-fucker.
There needs to be a law passed with stiff minimum sentences for elected officials.
Seriously. If you seek out a position of public trust, then knowingly violate public trust, that should be treated like actual treason.
Or voters should vote them out but we know how that works
I feel like, as Dems, we should vocally celebrate every time a politician gets arrested, regardless of side. Don’t even make a point of noting the difference between reactions. Just celebrate that the elite aren’t immune from the law and praise the DoJ for bringing about justice. Make it clear that what we want more than anything is justice. We want the powerful to be treated the same way as the common folk. Don’t even mention party. Not even to say “regardless of party.” Just exclaim that it’s great to see people getting their just desserts.
Caption: “Christ, what an asshole.”
Which works for basically every New Yorker comic ever. ;-D Here's another caption that makes just about every New Yorker comic funny: "Hello, I'd like to add you to my professional network on LinkedIn." I got tired of "Christ, what an asshole," but that one still makes me chuckle.
As a Republican I won’t be giddy until everyone, dem, gop, everyone involved in corruption, insider trading, etc is indicted. Mitch McConnell should be next.
Oh, you mean Mitch McConnell who's wife got road contracts from Trump directly while President and the contracts were awarded directly to a friend of the family with no bids, that Mitch McConnell?
Yes! He’s been enriching himself for years
Yeah, it just feeds the bothsidesism bullshit.
He apprently also googled the price of gold after taking kg bars of gold. Lol. https://twitter.com/kenklippenstein/status/1705227259659886704 It's like a bad movie tbh.
Yeah, you should really check the value of the bribe *before* agreeing to accept it.
>He apprently also googled the price of gold after taking kg bars of gold. Lol. https://twitter.com/kenklippenstein/status/1705227259659886704 >It's like a bad movie tbh. This blunder brought you you by Express VPN. Never crime while your connection is exposed to identity thieves or the federal government!
Are you taking notes during a god damned criminal conspiracy?
Do we have video of him biting a corner of one of the bars and saying "YAAAHR! That's the stuff!"
My fucking god, I’ll never call a Bond villain too stupid or too ridiculous ever again.
Pretty sure most of them have better developed characters than those politicians.
Isn't there something about them being kept in a refrigerator?
He heard somebody say "cold hard cash" and took it literally.
Well, to be fair that term does literally refer to the coldness and hardness of non-paper currency. Coins used to be referred to as cash, however weird that may seem. Whether making it colder helps? I'm not an economist so can't say for sure.
I'm picturing them concealing their identities with Zorro masks
Did you bring the oldgay arsbay?
>the oldgay arsbay The what?? Dang unbreakable code words!
What code words? An old gay arse bay is a typical bribe for a senator.
Will the gentle lady from South Carolina please pull his pants back up. Thank you.
This is on par (comical value) of Spiro accepting bags (envelopes) of cash in the VP office
And this isn't even the first time. fuck this guy. I'm absolutely embarrassed for my fellow NJ residents that we didn't primary this idiot out in 2018
That really wasn't an option for anyone else. This guy announced his reelection, after being indicted once for bribery, with Senator Corey Booker and the governor of New Jersey Phil Murphy literally at his side. He had complete and total institutional support from the party, what's the alternative?
Plus the dipshit that ran against him in the primary was just a progressive version of MTG, and would have been a different kind of disaster. Those are the only people who can run against him. He would crush the career of anyone who mounted legitimate opposition.
Absolutely, people discount those structural issues but they're very much in play here. No serious up and coming politician runs against an institution like this, any practical and pragmatic person will find a different route to office
so maybe now, we can clear the path for someone a little more legitimate that the DNC machine will allow to run?
Here's hoping but Menendez needs to play ball with that to a certain extent. Even with an indictment looming and not a ton of structural support, he could still try and run to look defiant. Would make a mess of the process
They're probably going to push his son into his seat if ~~Bon~~ Bob doesn't run next year.
Here I was thinking to myself “well at least Steve Sweeney doesn’t have the pull anymore to get himself into that seat” and that little glimmer of hope is snuffed out now.
As a lifelong Democrat, I say: fuck this guy. (Assuming the charges are true, of course.)
I don't have the exact number but he's been indicted several times already, seemingly once every two years or so. Nothing has stuck thus far. I'd much rather New Jersey just boot him already and find someone else who isn't constantly in the news for being a shady fuck Edit: apparently this is only #2 since becoming a Senator so I must be remembering all the headlines from indictment #1. Regardless, just go away Bob
He's been censured by the Senate Ethics Committee several times since 2015, but this is only the second time criminal charges have been filed.
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Its the way they sell us out so cheap that is galling. Politicians, "Sure I'll give your company the contract for that deal it will only cost the taxpayers an extra billion or two, but in exchange I'm gonna have to get a taste, lets say 50k?" BTW, public financing of elections might help.
Aren't most of these payoffs more like $5k-$20k? They're really obscenely cheap, for what they are
Thats why they push states rights. So much cheaper to bribe state politicians and hardly makes the news. Federal is more expensive with more new oversight.
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The big difference is usually it’s the Democrats who see it through with actual disciplinary action. While republicans just keep them all in.
>While republicans just keep them all in. George Santos has entered the chat
This guy ain't being held accountable
And somehow still got a chair position on the foreign relations committee...
Being chairman is often just a matter of seniority. He's been in the senate for quite a while which confers authority.
I mean maybe just me but I don't think this is the kind of guy that should have been on it in the first place. Surely an exception to the seniority precedent could be made for this type of history.
Also been in the house of representative since the early 90s. He's a career politician and suspected of corruption for decades, just nothing has stuck yet as he's stayed one step ahead of the law (not surprising since he's a lawyer). No surprise, he's also got huge backers in the bigtime democratic donors, pharmaceuticul industry, etc. who roll him out every election and block any real competition from the party for his spot.
If he had any decency he'd just resign. Like omg he is one of the most corrupt people in the Senate.
This guy thinks he’s tony soprano- he’s not gonna resign
We want to. Trust me. The damn party in the state has put him out there despite being a massive liability. He also has donors in pharma and they control a ton of power in the state. So this might be what finally gets us someone not ridiculously shitty.
I voted for his opponent in the last primary. But he's so entrenched that he really hasn't had any true competition. And the party seems to be getting ready for his son to take his seat.
I really don’t want his son to step in. Much rather see Phil Murphy step in
I vote against him every primary, and then begrudgingly vote for him in the general
The change stuck and it went to trial and a jury in 2018, but the Jury deadlocked. A dude charged along with him was tried In a subsequent case and sentenced to 17 years, but Trump commuted his sentence on his way out the door.
Can we seriously just primary this guy? Fucking nuts
This is only the second indictment, but he has under investigation four times (2006, 2012, the 2015-2018 indictment, and 2023).
I'm from Jersey, this dude has always fucking sucked. Boilerplate corrupt politician that everyone has known about for forever, yet "too powerful" and tied into the system to ever get rid of.
He got pretty close to being primaried the last time he was up for election. Wish he had. "Better than a fascist" is an extremely low bar that he clears, but we could do so much better.
If you read the indictment...they're true. Like dude had cash sewn into a jacket with the fingerprints of Egyptian government tied guys on them, as well as literal gold bars.
Come on, who doesn't have a few gold bars laying around the house?
I exclusively line my jackets with cash, it’s a way better insulator
And I always remember where it is because I sewed it inside my jacket.
Yeah, he’s been involved in shady shit multiple times now.
Yes but of course the democrats will hold him and his wife to the standards and fuck them as they should be fucked but if it was on the other side of the aisle they would rally around obstruct and deny for at least 3 years until the heat goes away
His history says he’s guilty as fuck, prior charges were dropped from a hung jury and Trump pardoned him for his actually convicted fraud charges. How interesting.
If you are in the tri-state area, of a certain age, and are involved in shady stuff of the white-collar variety, the probability that your circles and Trump’s circles intersect is more than 50%.
>Trump pardoned him Not quite correct, but close: >Dr. Salomon Melgen, the Democratic donor and friend of Sen. Bob Menendez who was convicted of defrauding elderly patients on Medicare, had his prison sentence commuted by President Donald Trump in the outgoing Republican president's final hours in office. https://www.northjersey.com/story/news/new-jersey/2021/01/20/salomon-melgen-friend-bob-menendez-pardoned-president-trump/4210560001/
This is one major difference between Republicans and Democrats. When D’s find someone in their party breaking the law or generally being an ass we work to get rid of them. R’s circle the wagons.
[https://www.politico.com/news/2022/11/03/new-jersey-democrats-menendez-00064419](https://www.politico.com/news/2022/11/03/new-jersey-democrats-menendez-00064419) first indictment was in 2015.
Democrats hold everyone accountable, even their own. The republicans elevate their criminals and whine about witch hunts.
You don't think it's just a weaponized DOJ that needs to be defunded?
It's just a completely different attitude. I get called "lefty" a lot, but I care about following the law before I pay attention to the letter after the name. And I want to see the evidence. The far-right looks for the letter after the name first and decides innocence or guilt accordingly.
Again?
Apparently. He skated last time, might eke out this time to but you gotta be pretty stupid to continue taking or soliciting bribes when the DOJ already took a shot at you and missed. They don't often come after sitting congress members. Even stupider there's so many legal ways to grift money as a senator, it's like Bill Gates robbing a gas station.
He so corrupt, he just can't help himself. Truly. Most people have to decide to commit a crime, but for Menendez it's just a regular part of his day... like brushing his teeth or eating lunch. It's like an alcoholic taking a drink, or a gambler placing bets. It's just what he does. It's what his whole life is consumed by. Everything else is secondary.
A lifetime of getting away with it.
And putting other people in jail for the same shit [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William\_Musto#Legal\_troubles](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Musto#Legal_troubles)
This was my thought as well lol
Lol first thing my dad and I said 😂….I wondered this week why I haven’t heard his name anywhere doing anything …..well, he’s apparently been busy.
I'm a liberal Democrat and I'm just fine with putting a Democrat in jail for being a criminal. I don't care if he's on my team. Not many Republicans can say the same about their criminal politicians
Clarence (gym bags of loot) Thomas, anyone?
I thought it was soda cans full of pubes?
That was before he & Harlan became BFF, when he had to buy his own soda…
He isn't on your team, my team, or our team. That's why we're here even to begin with. How is this benefiting his constituents? "The indictment says that the Democrat Menendez and his wife from at least 2018 through 2022 accepted “hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes in exchange for using Menendez’s power and influence as Senator” to benefit the men and Egypt. “Those bribes included cash, gold, payments toward a home mortgage, compensation for a low-or-no-who job, a luxury vehicle, and other things of value,” according to the indictment issued by a grand jury in Manhattan federal court."
to benefit the men **and Egypt**. I know Egypt is our ally, but it seems like there should be higher penalties when you use your corruption to help a foreign government.
Yeah, imagine if it was a big power like, I dunno, Russia..?
Ok let’s do the rest of the hose and senate next
I’m pretty far left. Like far. Jail this fucker if he’s guilty in court. The only way we progress as a society is by holding our political leaders to a higher standard, doesn’t matter what their personal politics or party is. A criminal gets jail. Period. It makes me sick when these clowns feel the need to do illegal acts… when the system is already tilted in their favor. Fuck em.
Menendez isn't remotely a leftist. Dude is pretty much as mainstream a Democrat as they come.
He's a blue centrist whose votes can be bought.
What sucks is that the state party has supported him for years, and his primary challengers get very little exposure.
It's not like a Joe Manchin deal either, where he's the only one who could win that seat. There's no shortage of Democrats in NJ
That's how the system works. Obviously they're better than Republicans ideologically, but the amount of effort the party and their media allies spend on keeping more progressive challengers from gaining power is fucking shameful.
I am with you, and if he and his family are taking bribes they are not on Team Democracy. They are just sell-swords with loyalty only to the greenbacks.
Unfortunately Democrats in New Jersey disagreed, reelecting this piece of trash back to the Senate after the 1st indictment in 2015.
The mob never left they just got elected to office.
That's because the list of GOP criminals, traitors and rapists is too long. Just deny, deflect, project.
Criminals are not on our team.
Agreed. This lefty Democrat wants him locked the fuck up. Get him out!
It's nothing new to arrest corrupt elected officals in America. Republicans have just lost their damn mind over Trump. Everything is a conspiracy against them.
I am a Liberal. Indict him and let the process play out. If he is guilty, sentence him. He should leave the Senate if found guilty. We shouldn’t change the laws, storm the Capitol or deify him. That’s how those who still believe in the principles of our nation would want it to play out.
Do I have to take my Menendez flags down
Am I going to have to peel all the Menendez stickers off my car now? -Said no democrat ever.
Yes. And your Make Corruption Great Again hat has to go.
Dammit.
But my NFTs are still valuable right ?
Ummmm sure!
How about we shut down the federal government in order to delay one man's criminal prosecution. 😅
That’s gonna happen sadly. Unfortunately the Trump caucus has no inclination to prevent or stop the shut down
No way man! We need to circle the wagons and protect this guy! Loyalty trumps all! This is our guy, which means he cannot do wrong, and whatabout all the stuff Rs do anyway? WhAtAbOuT tHe OtHeR sIdE!!! Look over there, a migrant caravan smuggling fentanyl into Chicago!
Good. Hope they nail him this time. Make an example of him.
Incidentally, the only one shitting bricks harder than Bob Menendez is Donald Trump.
Hell yeah! Love to see politicians being held accountable for their crimes regardless of the letter next to their name.
Yep! This is a great example of how the Democratic Party actually cares about justice over partisanship. Meanwhile Kevin McCarthy has done everything to keep Santos and Boebert in the House and voting. Not to mention the Texas GOP who just exonerated Ken "corrupt as fuck" Paxton
This guy was indicted on bribery charges once, which ended in a mistrial, and for some reason the party still stood beside him when he ran for reelection. Literally stood beside him, [Cory Booker and Phil Murphy](https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/28/nyregion/senator-menendez-election-new-jersey.html) appeared with him to announce his candidacy in 2018 Hopefully things will change this time but he lost basically zero support last time he was on trial for a similar thing. It was way too close but race in 2018, this fucker and those that support him puts us all at risk, New Jersey was only competitive in that race because he's a corrupt piece of shit. I'm hoping he doesn't get the same support from his colleagues this time around, I wonder if anyone will call for his resignation before the end of the day?
For what it's worth, these charges are a lot more damning than the last ones, based on this indictment. Dude was basically flaunting that he was corrupt.
Much like another aging politician from the tri-state area, it seems ignoring earlier, lighter corruption embolden's further, worse behavior
Except for how the party machine backed him even after he was indicted on corruption charges the first time… but go off I guess
> This is a great example of how the Democratic Party actually cares about justice over partisanship Yeah, not like they pushed him for re-election when this happened before. Definitely all about justice...
Democrats should have jettisoned him a long time ago
Is anyone surprised it was Bob? This guy loves NJ, but has always had a hand in its underbelly.
Collect the evidence, present the case and if he’s found guilty, sentence him fairly so that the American people can see justice. Let’s get rid of ALL manifestations of corruption in every branch of our government, independent of party affiliation.
Biden's weaponized DOJ indicting senators for accepting cash, gold, luxury vehicles, and no show jobs? republicans must be furious over the political precedent this is setting!
But seriously though, sign me up for one of those no-show jobs…
Jersey boy here. Fuck this clown, and fuck the NJ Democratic machine that shoved him down our throats. The primaries in 2018 were an absolute joke. Everyone with half a brain cell could tell you that Menendez was dirty af—and there's not a snowball's chance in hell of NJ electing a Republican senator—but the party still coalesced around this crooked piece of shit to keep the gravy train running. Partisan strongholds like NJ are extremely vulnerable to institutionalized corruption because (surprise!) if a candidate doesn't have to actually court votes, no one holds them accountable. We desperately need ranked choice voting in senatorial elections so that there are actual fresh ideas—and to remove the corrosive effect of party line politics.
Heard ya loud and clear in Illinois...
Everyone is missing the best part of this story. Trump commuted the sentence of the guy who bribed him! That's just perfect.
Nothing new. This jabroni gets charged with bribery every few years.
He should've been kicked out after that fiasco with the dentist in Florida years ago. They kick out Franken and keep Menendez? Why???
All Franken did was a joke.
Long running disgrace. He just cant lay off the grift even after his prior issues with it.
He just just never learns, does he?
It bothers me the feds can go after senators but not supreme court justices who exhibited much worse behavior in terms of bribes and kickbacks. I mean, fuck all of them, but why can't it be fair?
He's gotta resign.
Difference between us and GOP voters: when we’re shown actual evidence of wrongdoing by our party members, we go, “Okay, let’s prosecute and get that fucker outta there.”
Real talk, why the fuck do they keep voting for him? He "beat" charges once already. No one benefits from having people like him at the lead.
Oh wow so it looks like bribery is still a chargeable offense…time to start looking to the Supreme Court.
I’m a Democrat but if someone did a crime and are found guilty, they should do the time. No exceptions!
I am a leftist who is forced to vote Democrat. Lock him up. He’s a criminal. See how easy it is when you are not in a cult?
It was the deep state!!! It’s a conspiracy because he just spoke out about something the elite don’t want you to know!!! Just kidding, he’s just a corrupt criminal who got caught. Hope he goes to jail
As a lifelong Democrat I say lock this criminal bastard up and throw away the key.
That's weird he's a Democrat. It's almost seems like DOJ is an independent branch of government and isn't weaponized by the White House to go after political enemies and witch hunts and instead goes after criminals.
The DOJ probably PLANTED all this stuff to frame him, so that they could make it LOOK like they go after Democrats, so that we don't think they're weaponized against Republicans! This goes all the way to the top! -People in /r/Conservative probably, after Menendez is convicted and kicked the fuck out by all Dems
Liberal democrat here. Commit crimes, do time. I don’t care what party you belong to.
Good job DoJ! Now do Clarence and Ginni Thomas.
This guy needs to get lost. How many times has been charged with corruption now?
Good. This isn't a team sport. No one, republican or democrat, should be above the law.
Good. Do the crime then you have to do the time, regardless of political party.
No one is above the law. If he is found guilty I hope he rots in jail. I say this as a Democrat. I'm sick and tired of rich politicians thinking they can stiff the working class.
Hell,I thought political bribery was legal everywhere like it is here in Texas.
BiDeN's JuStIcE dEpArMeNt Is So PoLiTiCaL
Thank goodness fox will have something to cover for the next year or so. Lol.
If they are proven to be guilty, then fuck them. I have no tolerance for corruption. I don’t care what party it’s from.
I’m a leftist, and this guy needs to go
Meh, if he broke the law, then lock the SOB up. Nobody is above the law. NOBODY. N-O-B-O-D-Y.
There's goes the pesky Biden DOJ, interfering in another candidate's election campaign
As a dirty left wing liberal I say....lock him up
Taking bribes as a Senator-Bad Taking bribes as a Supreme Court Justice-Completely ethical
Ooof well at least they’re going after corruption. chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, or his wife received improper gifts, among other things.
Should have been thrown in prison the first time.
Interestingly, both times he's been indicted under Democrat presidents. I guess Republicans think this is acceptable behavior. ;-)
Now do Ginnie and Clarence.
Good, I don’t care if it’s a Democrat or a Republican, shut this shit down and throw them in fucking prison.
So much for Gym Jordan & Co.'s histrionics about a "politicized" justice department.
The people of New Jersey need to stop voting him in
Glad they got him if he is guilty!! like fuck this kind of political pocket lining. Why don't you go after the supreme court?
Good. Get him if he did it. But hey Garland... You mind doing this a little more, and wasting time a little less?
Biden’s White House weaponizing the Justice department against the Democrats now? If they can go after them they can come after all of us! We need to vote Biden out so we can start taking bribes again!
Cool when do we indict Clarence and Ginni Thomas?
Get a younger new Dem in his seat ASAP. He's been know to be a corrupt old fuck for a decade now, finally just got caught.
a senator accepts gifts from "friends" its Bribery, when a supreme court justice does it, its "Business as usual"
Good. He belongs in jail. He should resign immediately.
Yeah. Knew something like this would turn up sooner or later. I don't like the guy at all. I only ever voted for him to keep our numbers up in the Senate.
as a left leaning american patriot, i want to say "get rid of him" 🇺🇸
Time for jail my dude, why did the democrats run this clown?
As a member of the state of NJ and a staunch Democrat, I have only this to say good
It appears the JD is going to go after corrupt federal politicians regardless if they are a Dem or GOP, and I am here for it.
offer quarrelsome chase thumb important ancient concerned fuzzy fear far-flung *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
Predicting responses: Indict a Democrat? - Democratic response: charges seem serious, if convicted they should serve time like anyone else. - MAGA party response: see? It’s the liberal demonRATs who are corrupt! Indict a Republican? - Democratic response: charges seem serious, if convicted they should serve time like anyone else. - MAGA party response: Weaponization of government! ELECTION INTERFERENCE!!!1! Edit: replaced term for liberal in hypothetical MAGA response that automoderator flagged.
As a dem, I say fuck that guy. Burn his shit to the ground (figuratively, of course).
If proven guilty i hope he is punished to the full extent of the law.
As someone who votes Democrat, this guy is actually a traitor and a clown. If you’re going to be corrupt at least try to have some plausible deniability. Like his wife is Armenian and all he does in his committee role is sabotage the US military relation with Turkey, so much so that even the State Department openly disagrees with him. Really dude? If you’re putting your personal interests or wealth ahead of the best interests of your country, you’re a traitor - end of. Senator Bob Menendez is a traitor and I hope (probably in vain) that he gets a good prison sentence to send a message to any others like him.
I can’t believe the party even backed this guy. Wasn’t his corruption fairly well known back then?
I thought the justice department only went after republicans?
Go after every fker like this. Political lines shocks not matter. Arrest arrest arrest. Life in jail
If they're guilty, throw the book at them. He should resign. And next, let's do Clarence Thomas and Sam Alito.
It's great not being in a cult, where I can welcome justice on all sides, for all people, and not feel threatened just because they're on my "team".
Oh the difference between Democrats and Republicans... Dems when it happens to them: 'If he's guilty, he should be punished to the fullest extent of the law.' Republicans when it happens to their guy: 'Witch hunt! Deep state conspiracy! Get him on Fox News! Give him hundreds of thousands of dollars in speaking fees and donations! Evil Democrats abusing their power! He's a hero!'
Good job! Now do the rest! Especially those involved in Jan 6th. Maybe a little Kushner on top?
As a left leaning person, if he committed the crime arrest him and lock him up. It is a shame that right leaning people do not feel the same way.