Embattled Sen. Robert Menendez’s decision to run as an independent for New Jersey’s Senate seat may have more to do with holding the federal government hostage than serving his constituents, political analysts say.
Menendez, currently on trial in Manhattan federal court on bribery and corruption charges, could lose his pension and health insurance for life if convicted, under a law passed in 2012. The STOCK Act provides penalties that strip lawmakers of their retirement benefits if they are convicted of a corruption-related felony.
The Post reported that switching from Democrat to Independent to run for reelection is essentially an insurance policy for Senator Menendez: if convicted, he would likely lose his pension and health benefits, but if pardoned, he would be able to keep them.
The 70-year-old earns a $174,000 annual salary as a senator, and as a House member with more than 30 years of government experience, he is entitled to a pension of about $140,000 a year, as well as lifetime health care benefits for himself and his wife, Nadine Arslanian. U.S. Office of Personnel ManagementMenendez has served in the Senate since 2006 and previously represented New Jersey’s 13th Congressional District in the House of Representatives since 1993.
Political analysts say running as an independent would likely split the vote for his Democratic rival, Rep. Andy Kim (D-N.J. 3rd District), and could lead to a Republican winning the Senate seat. Hotelier Curtis Bashaw defeated opponent Christine Serrano Glassner. The mayor of Mendham Borough was endorsed by Donald Trump for the Republican nomination.
Experts say Biden may have a better chance of granting a pardon if Senator Menendez were to withdraw from the race to avoid splitting the vote, but some say Trump could also grant one.
Democrats are said to be furious that Menendez could lose votes and potentially New Jersey’s Senate seat for the first time in 52 years.
“As an independent candidate focusing his campaign on groups he supports — Latinos, pro-Israel and Hudson County voters — Menendez could land a blow to the Democratic winner of the New Jersey primary,” veteran political consultant Hank Sheinkopf told The Post. “In electoral politics, revenge is best served hot. His political allies are running from him, and he’s returning the favor.”
New Jersey hasn’t elected a Republican senator since 1972, and a win would upend the Senate’s slim Democratic majority, analysts say.
“By continuing to run for the New Jersey Senate, Menendez puts himself in a great position to either force a pardon from Biden or receive one from Trump as a thank you for taking a healthy seat from Democrat Andy Kim,” said Thomas Anderson, president of the nonprofit good government group Last Government Watchdog. “A Republican victory could shift the balance of power in Washington from Biden’s hands to Trump’s.” [Democratic Senate Majority Leader] “Chuck Schumer”
Senator Menendez, his wife and three associates were indicted last year on charges of bribery and conspiracy to act as foreign agents for Egypt and Qatar. Federal agents searched the Englewood Cliffs home where Senator Menendez lives with Arslanian in June 2022 and found 13 gold bars and $480,000 in cash stuffed in his shoes and jacket pockets, which court documents said were payments for the senator’s involvement in a criminal case and his help securing weapons for Egypt.
The senator is being tried separately from his wife, whose trial is scheduled to begin in July after she has undergone treatment for breast cancer.
Menendez’s lawyer did not respond to a request for comment Wednesday.
