Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) has given Senate Democrats a not-so-happy start to 2024 after a fresh round of accusations that he accepted lavish gifts in exchange for aiding a foreign government.
The second superseding indictment — this one accusing him of receiving gifts linked to Qatar — is the latest legal trouble staring down the New Jersey Democrat after he was charged last year with bribery and acting as a foreign agent on behalf of Egypt.
But the news also deepens the dilemma for Senate Democrats, a majority of whom have called on Menendez to resign but have not taken the more extreme step of calling for his expulsion — even as the New Jersey Democrat shows no signs of backing down.
Most senators were quiet on the matter Wednesday, and it remains unclear whether the latest accusations will change their public calculus.
After Menendez’s September indictment, more than 30 of his Senate Democratic colleagues called for him to step aside, but Menendez’s refusal has left them with little space to operate in short of calling for his expulsion.
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