Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) on Tuesday insisted he’s innocent as more than a dozen of his Senate Democratic colleagues called on him to resign over last week’s indictment on bribery charges.
Asked by a reporter on Tuesday at the Senate over why he isn’t resigning, Menendez had a quick and simple retort.
“Because I’m innocent,” Menendez said in response to a question from NBC News correspondent Ryan Nobles.
“What’s wrong with you guys,” Menendez added.
In keeping with Senate Democrats’ protocol, Menendez stepped down from his powerful position as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
Am I remembering all this incorrectly? Because from what I remember, none of his objectionable behavior happened while he was a Senator, and in fact it happened before he even ran for office. Some of it happened in the context of a USO show he was acting in. I'm not making excuses for his behavior, but I think it's a very bad precedent to hold someone in office to a higher standard retroactively. I think Franken deserved a chance to keep his job and show redemption.
But contrast this directly with Menendez, who is accused of much worse behavior, while in office, that relates directly to his integrity.
Of course menendez should step down. And be prosecuted and all that.
Yes, he’s worse, my point is, Franken wasn’t wrong to step down.