Key Points
- Senator Bob Menendez and wife Nadine face several charges of bribery.
- The investigation into the allegations threaten the Democratic majority ahead of the 2024 US elections.
- It is not the first time that Menendez has faced allegations of corruption.
US prosecutors have charged powerful Senator Bob Menendez and his wife with taking bribes from three New Jersey businessmen, which could complicate Democrats' efforts to keep their slim majority in the US Senate in next year's elections.
Menendez later stepped down temporarily from his role as chairman of the Senate's Foreign Relations Committee until the case is resolved, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said in a statement, adding that Menendez had a right to due process.
The US Attorney's office in Manhattan said Menendez, 69, accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of cash and gold bars in exchange for using his power and influence as New Jersey's senior senator to benefit the Egyptian government and interfere with law enforcement probes into the businessmen.
Both Menendez and his wife, Nadine, have vehemently denied all charges.
Menendez has been an important ally to fellow Democrat Joe Biden as the president has sought to reassert US influence on the world stage, rally support for congressional aid to Ukraine, and push back against a rising China.
New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, a Democrat, as well as several other Democratic state officials and members of the US House of Representatives, called on Menendez to resign from the Senate.
The New Jersey Senator is an ally of President Joe Biden and has helped him gain support for several measures including congressional aid to Ukraine. Source: AAP / Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP
However, Menendez said he had no plan to resign.
"It is not lost on me how quickly some are rushing to judge a Latino and push him out of his seat. I am not going anywhere," he said in a statement late Friday.
What are the claims?
Prosecutors are seeking to have Menendez forfeit assets including his New Jersey home, a 2019 Mercedes-Benz convertible, and about US$566,000 ($878,609) in cash, gold bars and funds from a bank account.
The indictment contained images of gold bars and envelopes stuffed with cash found inside jackets bearing Menendez's name hanging in his closet, with more than US$480,000 ($745,110) in cash found in his home.
What happens next?
Menendez, Nadine and the businessmen - Wael Hana, Jose Uribe, and Fred Daibes - are all expected to appear in Manhattan federal court on 27 September to face charges of conspiracy to commit bribery and conspiracy to commit honest services fraud.
Bob and Nadine also each face one count of conspiracy to commit extortion under the colour of official right.
The pair each face up to 45 years in prison, though any sentence would ultimately be determined by a judge and would likely be much shorter.
Democrat New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy as well as several other Democratic state officials and members of the US House of Representatives have called on Menendez to resign from the Senate, which he has refused.
"The alleged facts are so serious that they compromise the ability of Senator Menendez to effectively represent the people of our state," Murphy said in a statement.
Top federal prosecutor Damian Williams noted that Menendez's website says that as a senator he cannot compel an agency to act in someone's favour or influence matters involving a private business.
"Behind the scenes, Senator Menendez was doing those things for certain people - the people that were bribing him and his wife," Williams said. He added the investigation was ongoing.
Menendez said in a statement that prosecutors mischaracterised routine legislative work.
A history of corruption probes
The investigation marks the third time Menendez has been investigated by federal prosecutors, although he has never been convicted.
In 2018 Menendez was charged with accepting private flights, campaign contributions and other bribes from a wealthy patron in exchange for official favours, but the case was dropped.
A 2017 trial on those charges ended in a jury deadlock. He was also investigated in 2006.
Senate Democratic rules require any member charged with a felony to give up their leadership position, although they can resume it if found not guilty.
Menendez, on his third term, has said he plans to seek re-election next year.
An investigation could complicate Democrats' effort to expand their slim 51-49 seat majority in the 100-member Senate, although New Jersey has not elected a Republican to the Senate since 1972.
A Cuban American, Menendez has been the toughest opponent among Biden's Democrats of any move by the administration to soften policies toward Cuba and Venezuela.
He has also been one of the Senate's most vocal critics of Saudi Arabia and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, especially resistant to major weapons deals for the kingdom.
Criminal charges against members of the 100-seat Senate are relatively rare, with Republican Ted Stevens the last Senator to face corruption charges in 2008 but the conviction was later overturned.
