A Defiant Bob Menendez Claims Every Other US Senator Is at Risk of Being a Foreign Agent Following Guilty Verdict

Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ) put on a defiant front and spoke to cameras after being found guilty on 16 felony counts on Tuesday, including bribery, extortion, and acting as a foreign agent while a public official.

Upon exiting the court, Menendez — who used to be the chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee before his indictment — maintained that he did not do anything illegal and argued that his guilty verdict would put other U.S. Senators at risk for prosecution for trying to work with foreign countries:

Good afternoon. Obviously, I am deeply, deeply disappointed by the jury’s decision. I have every faith that the law and the facts did not sustain that decision, and that we will be successful upon appeal. I have never violated my public oath. I have never been anything but a patriot of my country and for my country. I have never, ever been a foreign agent. And the decision rendered by the jury today would put at risk every member of the United States Senate in terms of what they think a foreign agent would be.

After the verdict was announced, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) called on Menendez to resign from his seat in the Senate.

Watch the video above via MSNBC.