新泽西州民主党参议员鲍勃·梅嫩德斯周一表示，尽管面临辞职的压力，他仍将留任因腐败指控被起诉.
自9月22日被起诉以来，梅嫩德斯首次发表公开言论，表现得颇为挑衅。他在新泽西州的联合车站发表讲话，四十年前他在那里开始了他的政治生涯。他没有回答媒体的任何问题。
“我所取得的一切都是我为之努力的，尽管有人反对，也有人低估了我，”他说。“我知道这将是迄今为止最大的一场比赛。但正如我在整个过程中所说的那样，我坚信当所有的事实被呈现出来时，我不仅会被证明无罪，而且我仍将是新泽西州的资深参议员。”
梅嫩德斯和他的妻子纳丁被指控接受数十万美元的贿赂，以换取利用他的权力使三名商人瓦伊勒·哈纳、何塞·乌里韦和弗雷德·戴德斯致富，并使埃及政府受益。据检察官称，这些贿赂包括金条、一辆豪华敞篷车、房屋抵押贷款等等。
梅嫩德斯否认有不当行为，周一表示，“对我的指控只是指控。”
“美国民主和司法体系的基石是这样一条原则，即所有人在被证明有罪之前都被视为无罪。所有人。我不要求更多，也不应该更少，”参议员补充说。
起诉书称，梅嫩德斯还为他长期捍卫埃及人权的记录进行了辩护，以回应起诉书中的指控，即他向美国政府提供敏感信息“秘密援助埃及政府”，并“不当建议和施压”一名美国农业官员，以保护韩亚成为埃及清真肉类独家供应商的独家合同。
他似乎还提到了起诉书中令人震惊的成堆现金的照片。他解释说，这是他的家人在古巴遭受迫害后的一种“老式”安全机制。
梅嫩德斯说:“30年来，我一直从我的个人储蓄账户中提取数千美元的现金，这些钱是我为了紧急情况而保留的，也是因为我的家族在古巴面临被没收的历史。”“这些钱是从我的个人储蓄账户中提取的，是基于我30年来合法获得的收入。我期待在审判中解决其他问题。”
2023年9月25日，在新泽西州尤宁市，参议员罗伯特·梅嫩德斯和他的妻子纳丁·梅嫩德斯因与三名新泽西商人的腐败关系而被指控犯有贿赂罪，之后他发表了讲话。
迈克·西格尔/路透社
参议院多数党领袖查克·舒默上周宣布，梅嫩德斯暂时辞去了他作为参议院外交关系委员会主席的有影响力的职务。参议院民主党党团规则规定，任何被指控犯有重罪的成员必须辞去任何领导职务。
但是州领导要求梅嫩德斯完全离开国会。
新泽西州州长菲尔·墨菲和新泽西州民主党众议院代表团的大多数成员都敦促他辞职。墨菲称这些指控“令人深感不安”，并且“如此严重，以至于削弱了梅嫩德斯有效代表我们州人民的能力。”
俄亥俄州民主党参议员谢罗德·布朗(Sherrod Brown)周一下午成为第二位要求梅嫩德斯从参议院辞职的参议院民主党人。民主党参议员约翰·费特曼。他周六表示，他希望梅嫩德斯“选择体面的退场，专注于他的审判。”
布朗在一份声明中写道:“参议员梅嫩德斯辜负了公众的信任，应该从美国参议院辞职。”。
布朗是俄亥俄州的三任参议员，将在2024年面临参议院最严峻的改选挑战之一。
梅嫩德斯自2006年以来一直在参议院任职，明年将竞选连任。梅嫩德斯尚未表示他是否会在2024年寻求连任。一名记者大声问他是否会在讲话结束时离开，他对此置之不理。
新泽西州民主党众议员安迪·金(Andy Kim)周末宣布将竞选他的席位。
“在要求辞职的呼声之后，参议员梅嫩德斯说‘我哪儿也不去。’因此，我觉得必须和他竞选，”金在社交媒体上写道这不是我想做的，但是新泽西应该得到更好的。我们不能危及参议院或损害我们的诚信。"
尽管梅嫩德斯在他的评论中没有具体指出任何政治家的名字，但他似乎在抨击那些利用起诉书发动政治运动的人。
“记住，检察官有时也会犯错。很遗憾，我知道，”梅嫩德斯说。“其他人没有等待所有的事实被呈现出来，而是争先恐后地为自己或周围的人抓住机会。”
这是梅嫩德斯第二次被控腐败。A2015年的起诉在2018年以无效审判告终在陪审团未能就所有指控达成裁决后，法官宣布他无罪。
Defiant Sen. Bob Menendez speaks out after indictment, will not resign
Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., signaled Monday that he will remain in office despite pressure to resign after beingindicted on corruption charges.
Menendez was defiant as he delivered his first public remarks since the Sept. 22 indictment. He spoke in Union Station, New Jersey, where he started his political career four decades ago. He didn't take any questions from the press.
"Everything I've accomplished I've worked for despite the naysayers and everyone who has underestimated me," he said. "I recognize this will be the biggest fight yet. But as I have stated throughout this whole process, I firmly believe that when all the facts are presented, not only will I be exonerated, but I still will be New Jersey's senior senator."
Menendez and his wife, Nadine, are accused of accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars of bribes in exchange for wielding his power to enrich three businessmen -- Wael Hana, Jose Uribe and Fred Daides -- and benefit the Egyptian government. Those bribes, according to prosecutors, included gold bars, a luxury convertible car, home mortgage payments and more.
Menendez has denied wrongdoing, stating Monday, "The allegations leveled against me are just that: allegations."
"A cornerstone of the foundation of American democracy and our justice system is the principle that all people are presumed innocent until proven guilty. All people. I asked for nothing more and deserve nothing less," the senator added.
Menendez also defended his longstanding record of defending human rights in Egypt in response to allegations in the indictment that he gave sensitive U.S. government information "that secretly aided the Government of Egypt " and "improperly advised and pressured" a U.S. agricultural official to protect an exclusive contract for Hana to be the exclusive purveyor of halal meat to Egypt, according to the indictment.
He also seemed to address the shocking photos of piles of cash that were seen in the indictment. He explained it as an "old fashioned" safety mechanism following persecution of his family in Cuba.
"For 30 years I have withdrawn thousands of dollars in cash from my personal savings account which I have kept for emergencies and because of the history of my family facing confiscation in Cuba," Menendez said. "These were monies drawn from my personal savings account based on the income I have lawfully derived over those 30 years. I look forward to addressing other issues at trial."
Menendez has temporarily stepped down from his influential post as chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer announced last week. Senate Democratic caucus rules state that any member who is charged with a felony must step aside from any leadership position.
But state leadership is calling for Menendez to leave Congress altogether.
New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy and most of New Jersey's Democratic House delegation have urged him to resign. Murphy called the allegations "deeply disturbing" and "so serious that they compromise the ability of Sen. Menendez to effectively represent the people of our state."
Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, on Monday afternoon became the second Senate Democrat to call for Sen. Menendez to resign from the upper chamber. Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., said Saturday that he hopes Menendez "chooses an honorable exit and focuses on his trial."
"Senator Menendez has broken the public trust and should resign from the U.S. Senate," Brown wrote in a statement.
Brown, Ohio's three-term senator, is set to face one of the Senate's toughest reelection challenges in 2024.
Menendez, who has served in the Senate since 2006, is up for reelection next year. Menendez has not yet said whether he'll seek another term in 2024. He ignored a shouted question from a reporter about whether he would at the conclusion of his remarks.
U.S. Rep. Andy Kim -- a fellow New Jersey Democrat -- announced over the weekend will now run for his seat.
"After calls to resign, Senator Menendez said 'I am not going anywhere.' As a result, I feel compelled to run against him," Kim wrote in a social media post. "Not something I expected to do, but NJ deserves better. We cannot jeopardize the Senate or compromise our integrity."
Though Menendez did not specifically name any politician in his remarks, he seemed to take a shot at those using the indictment to launch political campaigns.
"Remember prosecutors are wrong sometimes. Sadly I know that," Menendez said. "Instead of waiting for all the facts to be presented, others have rushed to take the opportunity for themselves or those around them."
This is the second time Menendez has been charged with corruption. A2015 indictment ended in a mistrial in 2018after a jury failed to reach a verdict on all counts and a judge acquitted him on some charges.
