NJ Sen. Bob Menédez to applaud claims he'll resign after federal bribery conviction

US Sen. Bob Menendez has applauded rumors of plans to resign after being convicted on federal bribery charges.

The New Jersey Democrat denied claims about his plans, although he has been under pressure for months to resign from members of his own party, including Gov. Phil Murphy and Sen. Cory Booker, the other Sen. American representing New Jersey.

“I can tell you that I have not resigned or spoken to so-called allies … It seems to me that there is an effort to try to force me to testify,” Menendez told CBS New York's Christine Sloan on Wednesday. “Anyone who knows me knows that this is the worst way to achieve a goal with me.”

(Video credit: CBS News New York)

The 70-year-old lawmaker was found guilty by a federal jury of 16 counts of an 18-count indictment that included bribery, extortion and acting as a foreign agent.

Menendez has denied the charges, but could face decades in prison when he is sentenced in October. The senator has pledged to appeal the sentence and an NBC News report On Tuesday, he claimed he had told “allies” he was resigning his Senate seat.

“Menendez, who had been defiant for months in the face of calls from dozens of Senate Democrats to resign, appears to have finally relented after the guilty verdict and mounting threats to oust him if he refused,” NBC News reported, citing two anonymous sources. “directly familiar with the conversations.”

“He is calling on allies to notify them of his intention to resign, these sources said, which would end a three-decade career in Congress that included a powerful committee chairmanship, the writing of major legislation and two criminal trials for whistleblowing of corruption”. added take

“Senator Menendez has undermined the public's faith and can no longer serve effectively in the United States Senate,” Sen. Gary Peters (D-MI) said in a statement.

“I hope it doesn't come to that, but if he refuses to do the right thing and resigns immediately, I support the Senate taking steps to remove him from office,” added the chairman of the Democratic Senate campaign arm.

“In light of this guilty verdict, Senator Menendez must do what is right for his constituents, the Senate and our country, and resign,” said Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D -NY) in a statement.

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Originally from New York, Powers graduated from New York University and eventually made her way to sunny South Florida, where she has been writing for the BizPacReview team since 2015.

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