CNN: Feds will bring criminal charges against Menendez
Dr. Salomon Melgen, left and Senator Robert Menendez
CNN is reporting that outgoing Attorney General Eric Holder has signed off on prosecutor’s plans to proceed with criminal corruption charges against New Jersey’s senior U.S. Senator, Bob Menendez.
The fact that Menendez has been the most outspoken Democratic opponent of the Obama Administration’s policies regarding Iran and Cuba is just a coincidence.
The Justice Department is said to believe that Menendez improperly pressured Medicare administrators to back off on his friend and benefactor, Dr. Salomon Melgen, a Miami ophthalmologist accused of over billing the heath care program. Additionally, Menendez has been accused of using his position the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to improperly advocate for a Melgen owned security company doing business in the Dominican Republican.
Melgen provided Menendez private air travel and lavish trips to the Dominican Republic. The Florida eye doctor was also a large donor to the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee while Menendez was its chairman and was a significant donor to the senator’s campaign coffers during his 2012 reelection campaign.
CNN says charges will be levied in the next couple of weeks and that prosecutors are up against a statute of limitations deadline for some of the charges.
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While I would love to be an optimist, remember when NBC broke some story about Christie not being charged in Bridgegate.
Simply put, I don’t trust any media outlet, let alone CNN. Who knows if this is smoke.
That said, if true; it is long overdue. And if true for the Holder/Obama Justice Department to sign off on this, there must be embarrassing and smoking guns.
But, until I see the ink on the paper, I won’t believe it BECAUSE it is the Holder/Obama Justice Department and liberals stick together.
Gee. I wonder if Sen. Menendez had been 100% behind the Obama – Iran alliance would this even be discussed?
Roberts caved on the Obamacare vote, have personally believed these people will stop at nothing to scare/ investigate/take out/ punish anyone who speaks out against them and their destructive policies: it’s called tyranny, and a dictatorial regime, and our fine GOP majorities do not seem to be about stopping them, at all. If you are a praying person, suggest you pray for what’s left of the USA.
Looking ahead, this would be an ideal time for Christie to forget about his Presidential fantasy and begin preparations to take over the NJ Senate seat. The alternative to Christie would be another Obama look alike in the Senate representing NJ.
If Menendez is forced to resign, look for Pallone to run for his seat.
Now, if we could wish that would create an opportunity for Pallone to lose the Senate race and Republicans find a winning ticket in the 6th CD, that would be grand wouldn’t it.
Sigh, but that’s putting the cart WAY before the horse. One can only dream though.
Knowing Bobby Boy “Mo’ Money” Menendez as we do, does anyone think it is just coincidence that when this story broke two years ago (and extensively reported on this website) all of a sudden he became a born-again Joe Lieberman Democrat, a neoconservative chickenhawk ready to fight for Israel and against Iran to the last drop of American blood (and treasure) except his own, of course?
Does anyone doubt that Bobby Boy will have a legal defense fund financed by the likes of Sheldon Adelson and other pro-Israel moneybags, and when he gets out of jail there will be a lucrative job waiting for him at AIPAC as a lobbyist?
How much of the story is just vengeful Obama going after the guy for speaking out against the Cuba deal, and as Tom Stokes noted, the Iran deal? Not that I don’t think Menendez is as crooked as implied, just that he’d of been left alone if he went along with the king.
I don’t recall if Chiesa won a special election or was just appointed to fill the expired term of Lautenberg.
Micheal Grimm, a congressman from NY stepped down after a plea to a felony conviction. Gov Cuomo has pledged (although reluctantly) to have a special election, in an area that is probably going to elect a Republican.