OAN’s Daniel Baldwin
10:53 AM – Wednesday, September 27, 2023
U.S. Democrat Senator Bob Menendez pleaded not guilty Wednesday to bribery charges. Federal prosecutors have accused both Menendez and his wife of accepting cash and gold bars in exchange for assisting the Egyptian government and interfering in law enforcement investigations.
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“I think he’s trying to pull one over on everybody,” said Paul Kamenar, counsel for the National Legal and Policy Center.
In a 39-page indictment, federal prosecutors allege they found over $480,000 in cash “stuffed into envelopes and hidden in clothing, closets, and a safe.” Menendez (D-N.J.), earlier in the week, told the press that much of that money was withdrawn from his savings to prepare for possible emergencies.
“For 30 years, I have withdrawn thousands of dollars in cash from my personal savings account for emergencies and because of the history of my family facing confiscation in Cuba,” Menendez said.
Kamenar is calling Menendez’s bluff though.
“When you look at his financial disclosure forms, which I did for the last 10 years, he had two accounts,” Kamenar explained. “One was his old Congressional savings account, and now his Senate account. And, yes, the House account dipped about $15-20,000.”
“But the Senate account went from the $50-100,000 range in 2013 to $100-250,000 in 2018,” Kamenar continued.
Menendez was released on a $100,000 personal recognizable bond by the judge, who permitted foreign travel but only for official business and with prior notification.
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