The Bob Menendez corruption trial sure won’t be boringNY Post, Sep 5, 2017, Editorial Board
For the first time in nearly four decades, a sitting US senator goes on trial Wednesday on federal bribery charges in a case that could have profound political impact.
Prosecutors have laid out a strong case against New Jersey Democrat Robert Menendez in their indictment. But in the two years since it was unveiled, the Supreme Court has made it much harder to win a conviction.
The senator is charged with taking nearly $1 million in personal gifts and campaign cash from a longtime friend, allegedly in return for political favors.
Menendez says the favors were very much like those in the cases of Virginia ex-Gov. Bob McDonnell and former New York Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver, whose convictions wound up being overturned.
Prosecutors counter that friendship and bribery aren’t incompatible — and what’s key is the timing of the favors, often coming the same day Menendez was sent a hefty donation by Dr. Salomon Melgen.
The wealthy Florida ophthalmologist also treated Menendez (as both freely admit) to free vacations at celebrity-packed luxury Caribbean resorts.
The senator, meanwhile, personally intervened on Melgen’s behalf in disputes with federal agencies and arranged visas for the doctor’s “girlfriends” from Brazil, Ukraine and the Dominican Republic.
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