{UAH} GOING AFTER ALLAN BARIGYE THE FORUM BULY WITH HARD FACTS ->We will not attack his family but self with facts ->Part 531

Bob Menendez had built reputation as Senate’s most unethical

By Thomas Anderson

Published Sep. 22, 2023, 7:08 p.m. ET

Federal prosecutors announced charges of bribery against Sen. Bob Menendez and his wife, Nadine Arslanian Menendez, on Friday, Sept. 22, 2023.Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call/Sipa USA

Tales of hidden cash in jackets and concealed gold bars in closets might seem more suited to the pages of a noir crime thriller than the annals of politics.

Yet these sensational allegations have come to define the career of Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez.

Back in 2005, as Menendez’s political trajectory was soaring, the late Assemblyman Eric Munoz, a leading Hispanic Republican in the state Legislature at the time, keenly observed, “Bob Menendez has proven time and again that his only interest is the ambitions of himself and his cronies.”

Years on, with the weight of investigations and accusations, this statement feels eerily prophetic, leading to the inevitable question: Has Menendez evolved into our generation’s most corrupt member of the Senate?

The latest indictment might be the crescendo, but the symphony of suspicion has been playing for a while. After all, Menendez has established two legal defense funds in a mere decade.

The precursor fund was centered around allegations tied to a purported eye doctor — a donor with more than a passing interest in the Senator. Tales of Caribbean getaways, visas for South American models, and dubious dealings in port security dogged Menendez.

Liberty State Park was the scenic starting line for Menendez’s Senate odyssey.

Yet, not long after, in 2006, then U.S. Attorney Chris Christie revealed an inquiry into Menendez’s financial undertakings — specifically, sizable rent payments from a charity the Senator was notably passionate about championing.

This was merely an overture to further claims of illicit campaign contributions that painted Menendez in a perpetual light of controversy.

Yet, through all of this, the voters of New Jersey continuously entrusted Menendez with their representation. This may have emboldened Menendez, guiding him toward ever bolder criminal endeavors.

What’s genuinely baffling is the longevity of his political career despite the looming shadows of controversy. It’s not solely the unyielding support of New Jersey voters that’s perplexing, but the systemic apathy that allowed these scandals to fester unchecked.

Menendez’s initial legal skirmishes, from which he emerged relatively unscathed, possibly provided the audacity for subsequent questionable actions. The perception that political figures can dodge repercussions might’ve been further cemented with revelations surrounding the Biden family, providing a political cover that selling influence has unfortunately become an unwritten norm in political circles.

This continuous sequence of scandals, not just surrounding Menendez but within the broader political spectrum, underlines a concerning degradation of integrity in our political apparatus.

It begs the question: How many more Menendez-like stories are simmering beneath the surface, waiting to erupt?

Should this trial succeed where a previous one failed, Menendez’s legacy won’t be remembered for public service or legislative accomplishments.

Instead, he’ll be memorialized as an exemplar of unchecked ambition, of how continuous electoral support can foster audacity in the politically inclined.

Who's involved in the indictment of Sen. Bob Menendez

The New Jersey Democrat is facing charges of taking gold bars and bribes and stashing hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash around his house in return for using his “power and influence” — including his position as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee — to benefit the Egyptian government and two local businessmen.

Menendez and his wife Nadine Menendez were charged with accepting hundreds of thousands in bribes including over $100,000 worth of gold bars.

Sen. Robert Menendez and Nadine Menendez

The New Jersey Democrat was indicted Friday for allegedly accepting a Mercedes Benz C-Class sedan, 13 gold bars and $566,000 in cash, which FBI agents found “stuffed in envelopes” after a June 2022 search of his home.

Senator Menendez’s wife, Nadine, was indicted alongside her husband for taking bribes. The Menendezes also received mortgage payments, a recliner, exercise machines and other items in exchange for shielding co-defendants Wael Hana, Jose Uribe and Fred Daibes.

Bob Menendez also allegedly attempted to intervene in a criminal case against Daibes by recommending President Biden pick current New Jersey US Attorney Philip Sellinger, who the senator believed would apply a light touch to the cause.

If convicted on all charges, the Democratic senator faces up to 45 years in prison.

Real estate developer Fred Daibes allegedly bribed the senator and his wife with cash and gold bars.AP

Fred Daibes

Menendez and his wife allegedly had a longstanding relationship with New Jersey real estate developer Fred Daibes, who court papers say bribed the couple with gold bars and cash for a series of favors, including the senator’s help disrupting a federal prosecution into Daibes.

Daibes received probation after pleading guilty last year to entering false loan information.

Bob and Nadine Menendez used a cash bribe to buy a 2009 Mercedes C-class convertible, authorities say.US District Court

Jose Uribe

In April 2019, Menendez’s wife Nadine met former insurance agent from Union City, NJ. Jose Uribe “for five minutes.” Nadine ducked into the parking lot of a restaurant where Uribe, 56, handed her $15,000 in cash, court papers allege.

She then used the cash to make a down payment on a Mercedes-Benz C-class convertible – while Uribe asked the senator to tamper with the state attorney general’s prosecution of one of his colleagues for insurance fraud, according to the court docs.

Wael Hana

Menendez allegedly updated unnamed Egyptian officials in real-time about US military aid to the country through Edgewater, NJ., businessman Wael Hana. The businessman sent Menendez’s proposal for foreign military sale to Egypt of tens of thousands of rounds of ammunition for firearms and tanks to an Egyptian official for approval.

Wael Hana, who is originally from Egypt, is a businessman.

In early 2021 Hana allegedly used funds from his halal business to send two exercise machines and an air purifier, among other items, to the Menendez home.

In exchange for these gifts and other alleged bribes, Menendez improperly pressured a US Department of Agriculture official to protect Hana’s “exclusive monopoly”, granted in 2019, on signing off on US food exported to Egypt as compliant with halal standards, despite Hana having no prior experience with halal certification, the feds said.

Some might smirk at his alleged indiscretions, but for many, his story serves as a potent reminder of the vast work needed to cleanse our political arena.

Thomas Anderson has been a Washington government watchdog for 15 years and is the founder and publisher of www.theblackdc.com.

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