Tipsheet

It Took This Long for Schumer to Call on Menendez to Resign. What's Next for the Embattled Dem?

Rebecca Downs
Rebecca Downs  |  July 16, 2024 4:45 PM

Earlier on Tuesday, Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) was found "guilty" on all counts. He had been indicted last September and new federal charges kept coming in. All this time, Menendez kept serving in the Senate, obtained enough signatures to run for reelection as an Independent, and continued to receive classified briefings. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) also refused to call on him to resign, until Tuesday. 

The one-sentence statement was posted by Schumer's official account and also appeared on the Senate Democrats' website. 

In addition to the time it took for Schumer to finally call on Menendez to resign, another noteworthy detail is that the majority leader is also presently keeping quiet on calling for expelling the fellow Democrat.

Fox News' Chad Pergram has been posting about the difficult process involved in expelling Menendez, should it come to that.

Gov. Phil Murphy (D-NJ) and Sen. Jacky Rosen (D-NV), the latter who is facing a tough reelection in a "Toss-Up" race this November, have called for expelling Menendez if he won't resign. Sen. Bob Casey, Jr. (D-PA), who is also up for reelection and potentially faces a tough race, also brought up expulsion. 

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Pergram said he asked Schumer "on multiple occasions, on four or five occasions, if he should push to expel Bob Menedez after they expelled George Santos in the House of Representatives, and each time... he ducked the question," as he said, "there are standards of conduct in the United States Senate and Sen. Menendez has fallen below that."

As Pergram pointed out in one thread, the Senate has only expelled 15 senators, and none since the 19th Century. Members have resigned when it appeared as if they may have been expelled.

Another thread explains that the process involves a resolution to expel Menendez, with a two-thirds vote needed. The motion may then end up in the Senate Ethics Committee, where it may or may not be tied up and a motion to discharge may be necessary.

While it takes a simple majority to proceed to the expulsion resolution, the filibuster may come into play and cloture would need to be filed.

While on "America Reports," Pergram offered that "there is not a lot of love for Bob Menendez in the United States Senate right now, and when the Senate comes back next week, there's probably going to be a push, if it's not obvious that he is going to resign, possibly to expel him," also reminding it will take a two-thirds vote to expel.

In the meantime, the Senate Ethics Committee also released a statement noting how, immediately after Menendez was indicted last year, "the Committee initiated an investigation into the allegations of misconduct against [Menendez]." 

"Now that Senator Menendez's trial has concluded, the Committee will complete its investigation promptly" and "will consider the full range of disciplinary actions," the statement also read in part.

There's a very different story when it comes to Republicans in the House expressing a willingness to expel fellow members, even one from their own party. Now former Rep. George Santos (R-NY) was expelled last December, despite how he has not been convicted of a crime. Santos is under federal indictment, though, and a damning report from the House Ethics Committee also came out in the weeks before he was ultimately expelled.

As for his fate beyond the Senate, Menendez faces up to 200 years in prison and will be sentenced in October. He expressed being "deeply, deeply disappointed" in the verdict and even claimed he "will be successful on appeal."

Pergram also mentioned during "America Reports" that if the decision is appealed "that would drag this out awhile here."