Publicly, Democrats successful Menendez’s location authorities are rallying astir their elder legislator arsenic details of the latest probe statesman to emerge: Federal investigators are focusing connected a New Jersey company that was awarded exclusive rights to export halal nutrient to Egypt, The New York Times reported. Any transportation to Menendez remains unclear.
Privately, it’s a antithetic story.
Some New Jersey Democrats are expressing heavy vexation the 68-year-old, three-term legislator could erstwhile again beryllium nether an ethical cloud. Most see Menendez an effectual senator, but immoderate are opening to judge his ineligible troubles endanger to outweigh that. Others garbage to code the question altogether, insisting they’re excessively focused connected Tuesday’s midterm predetermination to interest astir it.
Menendez, who roseate from the cauldron of municipality Hudson County Democratic instrumentality authorities to go seat of the almighty Senate Foreign Relations Committee, has acknowledged the investigation but said helium does not cognize its scope.
“Senator Menendez is ever successful interaction with constituents and governmental, governmental and assemblage leaders passim New Jersey. His tireless advocacy connected behalf of the authorities is supported by those relationships and has earned him a agelong and heavy reservoir of bully will,” Michael Soliman, a spokesperson for Menendez, said successful an emailed statement.
Soliman said Menendez intends to question reelection successful 2024.
Democrats were caught disconnected defender by Menendez’s weakness successful the 2018 primary, erstwhile Lisa McCormick, a virtually chartless campaigner with nary important run infrastructure oregon money, got 38 percent of the ballot contempt the senator’s immense structural advantages. The results were work arsenic a protestation ballot against the senator.
For now, the lone happening connected nationalist show by New Jersey’s apical Democrats is loyalty and fealty to Menendez, a almighty fig who has been unfastened astir his willingness to punish Democrats disloyal to him.
“To those who were digging my governmental sedate truthful they could leap into my seat, I cognize who you are, and I won’t hide you,” Menendez said extracurricular of the national courthouse successful Newark successful 2017, aft helium bushed corruption charges.
Menendez’s power successful section authorities is truthful beardown that his son, Robert J. Menendez, is poised to instrumentality implicit the U.S. House spot his begetter occupied earlier being elevated to the Senate. The younger Menendez easy won the Democratic information to regenerate the retiring Rep. Albio Sires and is virtually assured of winning his predetermination adjacent week successful the solidly Democratic territory of North Jersey, conscionable crossed the Hudson River from Manhattan. The territory includes immoderate of the astir municipality areas of New Jersey, including parts of Newark, Jersey City and Elizabeth.
“I enactment him 100 percent,” Hudson County Democratic Chair Anthony Vainieri Jr. said successful a telephone interrogation erstwhile asked astir the latest probe of the senator. “No remark connected this story. I’m not going to get progressive successful this, OK?”
During a property league commemorating the 10th day of Hurricane Sandy’s devastating landfall successful New Jersey — an lawsuit that took spot conscionable days aft Menendez’s latest ungraded began to publically look — Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) described Menendez arsenic “my colleague, my friend, my member successful the Senate [and] my rock.”
“Bob Menendez was genuinely 1 of New Jersey’s large heroes astatine that clip of the tempest 10 years ago,” helium said.
At the aforesaid property conference, Gov. Phil Murphy, a chap Democrat, thanked Menendez for “gathering the billions of dollars we needed to get backmost connected our feet.”
“No 1 comes close,” helium said.
During a vigor interrogation Monday evening, Murphy described Menendez arsenic an “incredibly invaluable and important partner,” without commenting straight connected the investigation.
But astatine slightest 1 activistic connected the party’s near flank is voicing disapproval publicly.
Sue Altman, enforcement manager of the New Jersey Working Families Alliance, said the Menendez quality threatens to dampen Democratic enthusiasm and unpaid recruitment for canvassing.
“It’s a model into the ugliness of New Jersey politics, Hudson County politics. Menendez is simply a merchandise of these things,” Altman said successful an interview. “Overall, it’s a marque occupation for the Democrats. Stories similar this corroborate peoples’ priors that Democrats are corrupt. We request to instrumentality steps successful New Jersey to marque definite that is nary longer the case.”
Menendez won his archetypal predetermination to a afloat word successful 2006 despite a national probe by then-New Jersey U.S. Attorney Chris Christie into a nonprofit that rented abstraction from him portion helium helped it unafraid grants. No charges were ever filed and Menendez, who denied immoderate wrongdoing, received a missive from national officials successful 2011 saying the probe had been closed.
In 2015, aft Menendez was indicted connected national bribery charges for allegedly doing governmental favors for a person and governmental donor, Booker was 1 of the archetypal New Jersey Democrats to publically state enactment for him.
“I won’t waver successful my committedness to basal alongside my elder legislator to service our large state,” Booker said astatine the time. He was followed by astir each different salient New Jersey Democrat.
Menendez bushed those charges successful 2017 aft a lengthy trial, acknowledgment to a hung assemblage successful which 10 of 12 jurors wanted to find him not blameworthy connected astir charges.
During a courthouse speech aft his trial’s deadlock, Menendez decried prosecutors who “could not recognize or, adjacent worse, judge that the Latino kid from Union City and Hudson County could turn up to beryllium a United State legislator and beryllium honest.”
His reelection successful 2018 coincided with a Democratic question that helped propel him to a comfy 11-point triumph implicit Republican Bob Hugin, who’s present seat of the authorities Republican Party and who spent tens of millions of dollars against him.
A batch has changed since then, and with it, Democrats’ governmental calculations.
Most importantly, Murphy is politician until January 2026. Had Menendez resigned oregon been forced to permission bureau during the erstwhile scandal, Christie, a Republican who was past governor, would person appointed an interim replacement — presumably a subordinate of the GOP. That imaginable unsocial gave Democrats a immense inducement to instrumentality with Menendez.
Since then, New Jersey Democrats person developed a deeper seat of ambitious elected officials, immoderate of whom are already positioning themselves to tally for politician successful 2025 since Murphy is term-limited.
New Jersey’s Democratic authorities are often determined by a fewer powerfulness brokers forging an statement up of the primary, and the state’s determination governmental bosses would apt salivate astatine the imaginable deals to beryllium chopped connected who would get the party’s motion for legislator and who would get enactment for politician should Menendez measurement aside.
So far, overmuch of the speculation among insiders arsenic imaginable Menendez replacements has focused connected Reps. Josh Gottheimer, Mikie Sherrill and Donald Norcross and Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop. There’s adjacent been speculation, possibly far-fetched, that Murphy could name himself to the seat.
“I wouldn’t interest astir it. Not astatine this point. It’s mode excessively aboriginal for anybody to effort to leap successful the guy’s grave,” erstwhile authorities Senate President Steve Sweeney said successful an interview.
“He’s been an astonishing legislator and does a truly bully occupation arsenic seat of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee,” said Somerset County Democratic Chair Peg Schaffer, who leads the enactment successful a once-solidly Republican suburban region that shifted Democratic successful the Trump era.. “It seems similar portion of what happens erstwhile you service successful bureau successful this state, particularly erstwhile you travel retired of Hudson County, you’re going to beryllium taxable to investigations implicit and implicit again.”
She added: “Just knowing the man, I don’t deliberation there’s immoderate credibility to it.”
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