After a jury found U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez guilty on all counts in a corruption trial, both of her colleagues from New Mexico said that he should resign, and Menendez reportedly will resign.
Heinrich, D-New Mexico, called for Menendez to resign when federal prosecutors filed the charges against the New Jersey Democratic Senator.
“Senator Menendez rejected our calls for him to resign when his criminal charges were first announced, insisting that he would be found innocent,” Heinrich said in a statement on Tuesday. “Now that he has been convicted, it’s past time he resign. Our country deserves leaders focused on delivering for the good of American families, not their own criminal sentencing.”
“Like every American, Senator Menendez had an opportunity for a fair trial with a jury of his peers,” Luján told NM Political Report in a statement Wednesday. “Now that the verdict has come back guilty on all charges, Senator Menendez should resign.”
The federal jury deliberated for more than 13 hours, according to media reports, and found Menendez guilty of taking bribes in the form of cash, a luxury car and even gold bars. The jury also found Menendez guilty of acting as a foreign agent.
Prosecutors said Menendez was using the power of his Senate office to aid Egypt.
Menendez’s defense included pinning the blame on the crimes on his wife, co-defendant Nadine Menendez. A federal judge delayed the case against Nadine Menendez indefinitely as she undergoes cancer treatment.
Update: Added a quote from Ben Ray Luján and information about Menendez reportedly telling colleagues he would resign.