Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-New York, flanked by Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nevada, Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minnesota, and Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI) as he speaks during a news conference on Capitol Hill on May 22, 2024 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Kent Nishimura | Getty Images)
U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer called on Sen. Bob Menendez to resign Tuesday in the wake of Menendez’s conviction on all counts in his federal bribery trial, saying the senator “must now do what is right for his constituents, the Senate, and our country.”
Gov. Phil Murphy, who asked Menendez to step down when he was indicted in September, said in a separate statement that if Menendez doesn’t immediately resign, the Senate should vote to expel him. Murphy’s wife, Tammy, briefly sought the Democratic nomination to succeed Menendez next year.
“Today’s verdict finding Senator Bob Menendez guilty on 16 counts demonstrates that the Senator broke the law, violated the trust of his constituents, and betrayed his oath of office. It also shows that in America, everyone — no matter how powerful — is accountable to our laws,” Gov. Murphy said.
Jurors found Menendez guilty of accepting bribes of cash, gold, and other gifts from three New Jersey businessmen in exchange for doing favors for Egypt and Qatar and meddling in two criminal cases.
Two of Menendez’s codefendants, Fred Daibes and Wal Hana, were also found guilty on all counts. A third, Jose Uribe, pleaded guilty in March and testified for prosecutors in the trial. Menendez’s wife, Nadine, was also charged and is being tried separately.
New Jersey’s other senator, Cory Booker, first called on Menendez to resign in September and repeated the call Tuesday, which he referred to as a “dark, painful day for the people of New Jersey.”
“Representing people in Congress demands the public’s trust. When any elected official violates that trust, it is a betrayal of the oath we take to serve the people who’ve elected us. Without that trust, our ability to do our work and perform our duties for our constituents is compromised,” Booker said.
Rep. Andy Kim, who won the Democratic nomination to seek Menendez’s Senate seat in November, said the verdict means Menendez is “unfit to serve.”
“This is a sad and somber day for New Jersey and our country,” Kim said.
Kim will face Republican Curtis Bashaw in November’s Senate race. Bashaw said Tuesday that Menendez’s guilty verdict is reason enough for voters to send him to D.C.
“New Jersey families deserve better than the continued corruption and made-for-tv political scandals, courtesy of Bob Menendez and the Democratic machine,” Bashaw said.
Menendez told reporters assembled outside the courthouse Tuesday that he intends to appeal his conviction and said he “never violated my public oath.”
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