Bob Menendez, the Senior Senator from New Jersey, has been indicted alongside his wife, Nadine Menendez, and their friends Wael “Will” Hanna, Jose Uribe, and Fred Daibes. This indictment alleges that they accepted bribes in the form of gold, cash, convertibles, and more in exchange for aid for Egypt and intervention in criminal cases.
My other videos mentioned in this video:
America’s Top Liar Arrested: George Santos
Trump’s Failed 2000 Presidential Campaign
Rod Blagojevich on Fox News: Normalizing Corruption
Resources mentioned in this video:
- Indictment
- Menendez statement on his indictment
- Coverage of previous indictment
- Jose Uribe’s sentencing
- Fred Daibes indictment
- FDIC Report
- Cardin statement
- Schumer statement
- Booker statement
- Menendez statement on why he had cash
Credits
“Circus of Freaks” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 4.0 License
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
If you would like to subscribe to my free newsletter then please go here.
If you want the posts from this blog delivered to your inbox:
I also have a Discord server that you can join here.
Transcript:
00:00:00:00 - 00:00:16:08 Bennett Tomlin Welcome back to my personal channel where we remember that the rich and powerful are to blame. Today, we're discussing New Jersey's senior senator, Democrat Bob Menendez, the chair or the former chair of the Committee on Foreign Relations. 00:00:16:08 - 00:00:22:14 Bennett Tomlin Bob Menendez was indicted alongside his wife, Nadine Menendez, Wael “Will” Hanna, Jose Uribe and Fred Daibes, 00:00:22:18 - 00:00:47:14 Bennett Tomlin in a scheme involving hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash and gold given in exchange for benefits for Egypt, their businesses and interference in criminal investigations. This allegedly included sharing highly sensitive information about the US Embassy in Cairo and working to clear arms sales. Also, not to put too fine a point on it, but this is a story that feels like it's full of spooks. 00:00:47:16 - 00:00:49:16 Bennett Tomlin Let's get into the cast of characters. 00:00:55:00 - 00:01:11:06 Bennett Tomlin Bob, the senior senator from New Jersey, has actually been charged with corruption before in a case he ended up winning. If you count the charges being dropped as winning. We'll get back to that, though. Nadine is Bob's wife. They started dating around 2018 and got married in 2020. 00:01:11:06 - 00:01:20:18 Bennett Tomlin Wael “Will” Hanna, one of the key figures in this indictment is an Egyptian who worked in New Jersey who allegedly was friends with Nadine long before she started dating Bob. 00:01:20:20 - 00:01:49:21 Bennett Tomlin The search of his cell phone revealed thousands of text messages to Nadine, many of which had been deleted from her phone. In 2018, Nadine told Will that she was dating Bob, and then Will and Nadine started introducing Bob, allegedly, of course, to Egyptian intelligence and military officials, while Fred and Jose directed the bribes. Jose is a friend of Will and has actually been convicted of fraud before in a case that caused him to lose his insurance brokers license. 00:01:49:23 - 00:02:15:05 Bennett Tomlin In that case, he misappropriated over $75,000 in premium payments from clients. Fred Daibes is a real estate developer and founder of Mariner's Bank who works with Will. He has also previously been charged with obtaining loans under false pretenses from the very bank he founded. He's been a fundraiser for Bob for years. Those are our key characters. Let's discuss the scheme. 00:02:21:04 - 00:02:47:15 Bennett Tomlin The scheme allegedly started in 2018. Nadine and Will are accused of starting to arrange meetings with Egyptian officials where Will was trying to facilitate military aid to Egypt in exchange allegedly, of course, Nadine was placed on the payroll for Will's company and eventually received a variety of other benefits. These meetings between Bob and Egyptian officials were often conducted without staff from his office or from the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. 00:02:47:17 - 00:03:18:17 Bennett Tomlin One specific meeting in May. I want to draw some attention to the very same day this meeting with Egyptian officials occurred. Bob reached out to the State Department to determine the number and nationality of persons serving at the US embassy in Cairo, Egypt. This information is not classified, but according to the indictment, is generally deemed highly sensitive because it could pose significant operational security concerns if disclosed to a foreign government or if made public. 00:03:18:18 - 00:03:44:18 Bennett Tomlin After Bob got this information from the State Department, he apparently texted his then girlfriend, Nadine, who then forwarded it to Wil, who then forwarded it to an Egyptian official. Allegedly, of course, at a different dinner that very same month. Allegedly, Bob told Will nonpublic information about the United States provision of military aid to Egypt. And apparently immediately after this dinner, our friend will text in an Egyptian official. 00:03:44:19 - 00:04:10:14 Bennett Tomlin The ban on small arms and ammunition to Egypt has been lifted. That means sales can begin. That will include sniper rifles, among other articles. Later that very same month, apparently a busy month. Nadine apparently reached out to Bob to ask for his help. An Egyptian official needed help writing and editing a letter to U.S. senators lobbying for more aid for Egypt. 00:04:10:16 - 00:04:34:07 Bennett Tomlin Nadine referred to this official as the general and told her husband that the general had gotten her clearance for a project. Allegedly, of course, Bob agreed to go write and edit this letter, which would eventually be sent to his colleagues to lobby on behalf of a foreign government related to a foreign relations issue, which again, is the committee he was leading. 00:04:34:08 - 00:04:57:08 Bennett Tomlin The indictment alleges he wrote this letter, sent it to Nadine, Nadine forwarded it to Will and Will, sent it to the General. Bob and Nadine then made sure to delete this email out of this inbox. This is because Bob and they are true professionals dedicated not just to Inbox zero, where you have no unread emails but outbox zero, where no one can tell what emails you have sent. 00:04:57:10 - 00:05:23:20 Bennett Tomlin A couple of months later, in July, Bob met with several Egyptian officials again in a meeting which was attended by Will and Nadine for the obvious reasons. And leading up to this meeting, the Egyptian officials made sure to send over briefing materials that they needed him to understand about the aid they wanted. The very next day, Bob texted Nadine, his wife, and said, and I quote, Tell Will, I am going to sign off the sale to Egypt today. 00:05:23:22 - 00:05:33:15 Bennett Tomlin Egypt 46,120 millimeter target practice rounds and 10,000 rounds, tank ammunition, $99 million. 00:05:33:15 - 00:06:10:18 Bennett Tomlin It seems hard for me to come up with a good faith explanation for why Bob, a senator on the Foreign Relations Committee would choose to pass along this official information through such an unofficial channel, passing it to his wife, who then forwarded it to a businessman running a Hillel certification in business who employs her, and this businessman then supposedly passing along this information about tank ammunition to an Egyptian military official. After receiving this text from Bob, Nadine did, as was requested, forwarded it to Will as requested, will then forwarded it to two separate Egyptian officials, one of whom gave the message a 00:06:10:18 - 00:06:32:08 Bennett Tomlin thumbs up. Those Egyptian military officials do love their tank ammunition. Meeting with people isn't normally a crime, though even when you seem focused on keeping those meetings hush hush. What becomes much more of a crime is when money or other valuable things change hands. So let's talk about some of the valuable things that were changing hands. Allegedly, of course. 00:06:32:12 - 00:06:54:21 Bennett Tomlin Will promise Nadine that he would provide her payments by giving her a no show job at his company. IS EG Halal. A company which was backed by her friend Fred Daibes, the bank fraudster. While, these payments were promised apparently Will failed to actually make the payments, perhaps because IS EG Halal had basically no revenue during this period. This disappointed Nadine. 00:06:55:01 - 00:07:20:17 Bennett Tomlin She went in to get paid and apparently allegedly told a bunch of Will's friends that she was not getting paid. And at least one of those friends became concerned that Bob would stop helping Will unless Nadine started getting paid. Nadine even complained directly to her husband, Bob, about this, saying, I have been so upset all morning. Will left for Egypt yesterday, supposedly, and now thinks he's king of the world. 00:07:20:20 - 00:07:48:15 Bennett Tomlin And as both countries wrapped around his pinky, I really hope they replace him. I wonder who the they in this text refers to, especially since Will was at least nominally not employed by the Egyptian government. Luckily for Nadine, the fiscal situation of IS EG Halal was about to get way better because the government of Egypt decided to grant IS EG Halal a monopoly on certification of U.S. food exports to Egypt 00:07:48:16 - 00:08:20:11 Bennett Tomlin as halal. This means that IS EG Halal was responsible for making sure that any food that was going to be marketed as halal that was exported from the United States to Egypt first went through their certification. And this was done despite the fact that Will and IS EG Halal had no previous experience with halal certification. Even more confusing about this choice is the fact that before Will got this benefit, there were several companies which were already licensed to do this. 00:08:20:13 - 00:08:37:19 Bennett Tomlin Nevertheless, in April 2019, an Egyptian official told Will that ICG hello was going to be granted this monopoly in the very next day. Nadine texted Bob to tell him. Seems like halal went through. It might be a fantastic 2019 all the way around. 00:08:37:19 - 00:08:57:16 Bennett Tomlin Once this monopoly is established, Nadine decides that she needs to get into a new business and sets up an entity called Strategic International Business Consultants with the help of Bob. After setting up this entity, she texted a family member to let them know every time I'm in a middle person for a deal. I am asking to get paid, and this is my consulting company. 00:08:57:18 - 00:09:18:00 Bennett Tomlin That's one of the more incriminating texts I have seen. And from my day job, I cover cryptocurrency where the hobby of most executives is sending incriminating text messages. The government regulators noted this new monopoly with a bit of concern. And shortly after it was granted, the USDA reached out to the government of Egypt and objected to this grant of monopoly. 00:09:18:02 - 00:09:35:21 Bennett Tomlin These objections were potential problem and were raised at a meeting between Bob, Nadine and Will, along with an Egyptian intelligence official in May of 2019. During this meeting, Will allegedly asked Bob to counter the objections. And after this meeting, they all went out to a steak house for dinner. 00:09:35:21 - 00:09:44:05 Bennett Tomlin Over the next two days, Will started sending Nadine a bunch of materials about the USDA's objection, including some he had gotten from an Egyptian official. 00:09:44:07 - 00:10:06:06 Bennett Tomlin Nadine texted these documents to Bob, and then Bob deleted those texts for some totally legitimate reason. A few days later, Bob calls up a USDA official and asks them to stop opposing the monopoly, a monopoly which would end up benefiting him and his wife, as well as his good friend Will. Let's get into the actual money moving now because that's even more fun than IS EG Halal. 00:10:06:21 - 00:10:18:22 Bennett Tomlin In July 2019 the mortgage company for Nadine started to foreclose on her house. This process was forestalled once IS EG Halal paid $23,000 to make the mortgage current. 00:10:18:22 - 00:10:25:23 Bennett Tomlin Figuring out how to do this involved a bit of discussion between our friends, including Jose, Fred, Nadine and Will. According to the indictment, 00:10:26:00 - 00:10:45:00 Bennett Tomlin at one point, Jose warned Nadine that Will might hesitate to pay that much, to which she responded. When I feel comfortable in planning the trip to Egypt, he will be more powerful than the president of Egypt. And after she said that, the mortgage got paid. Couple of months after this, Nadine was texting Fred and complaining that she was not getting paid. 00:10:45:06 - 00:11:04:09 Bennett Tomlin And then Fred again sent one of the most incriminating texts I have ever seen where he says, Nadine, I personally gave Bob a check for September. I wonder what totally legitimate transaction involved this bank fraudster personally giving this senator a check for September. And I would love an explanation. 00:11:04:09 - 00:11:12:02 Bennett Tomlin A few days after this, Nadine texted Bob to complain again, this time sending another series of texts which sound incredibly incriminating. 00:11:12:02 - 00:11:32:17 Bennett Tomlin She stated, I am so upset and that is so with six O's, which means she was quite upset. But what about. Well, you see, Will had not left an envelope the way every legitimate payment is made. Envelopes of cash left in a specific location. She continued. I thought Fred would make sure it's there. In the second day in a row, there is nothing. 00:11:32:19 - 00:11:54:08 Bennett Tomlin She went even further and alluded to recent meetings they had had. I thought after everything that happened, especially last Saturday and that week, that at least he would honor his word one time. I don't know if I should text Fred or wait. What should I do? Bob, sensibly told her that. No, you should not text or email. Perhaps already sensing another indictment waiting in the wings for him. 00:11:54:09 - 00:12:15:22 Bennett Tomlin Nadine, listening to this advice, decided to call Fred instead. And the very next day IS EG Halal wrote a $10,000 check to her firm, Strategic International Business Consultants. IS EG Halal would end up issuing three separate $10,000 checks to Strategic International Business Consultants. And Fred helped organize these. 00:12:15:22 - 00:12:27:20 Bennett Tomlin Around the same time all these payments are being made an Egyptian official is texting her friend Will to let them know that apparently the senator was putting a hold on aid to Egypt and Will quickly told this official he would look into it. 00:12:27:22 - 00:12:50:20 Bennett Tomlin Will then quickly tried to reach out to Nadine and then sent an encrypted message to Fred where he forwarded the message from the Egyptian official. Fred immediately called Bob and as soon as that call was over, Fred called Will back through the encrypted app. And after that call, Will was able to respond to the Egyptian official and let them know that the hold was not because of Bob. 00:12:50:21 - 00:12:59:15 Bennett Tomlin Whoo, gotta love those backchannel communication methods that involved three intermediaries and an encrypted communication app. That's foreign relations, baby. 00:12:59:15 - 00:13:18:10 Bennett Tomlin The indictment further alleges that Bob more explicitly offered assistance while on a trip to India in September 2019. The indictment alleges Nadine, Bob and Will at a dinner together and afterwards Will texted one of the Egyptian officials to say, Our man is traveling to India after two weeks and he's asking if there are any messages we need or anything for ICG. 00:13:18:11 - 00:13:27:20 Bennett Tomlin Later that month, Bob Will and Fred would meet with this Egyptian official. There's a lot more and we're going to try to go over them even faster so that this video eventually ends. 00:13:27:22 - 00:13:49:08 Bennett Tomlin Payments were not done either, with two exercise machines and an air purifier being sent to Bob and Nadine's house in early 2021, allegedly paid for by IS EG Halal. There's more meetings, too. Nadine set up one in June 2021 where Bob met with an Egyptian intelligence official in D.C. the day before this official was scheduled to meet with the other senators. 00:13:49:08 - 00:14:02:02 Bennett Tomlin In preparation for this meeting, Bob forwarded to Nadine a news article discussing questions senators were planning on asking related to human rights issues in Egypt, and Nadine sure to pass this along to the official. 00:14:02:02 - 00:14:21:21 Bennett Tomlin This actually was not even necessary because, as the official explained to her. Thank you so much. Chairman also raised it today. We can appreciate it, which means at least by my interpretation. Bob had warned this official. Anyways, Nadine responded that she just thought it would be better to know ahead of time what is being talked about in this way. 00:14:22:00 - 00:14:46:18 Bennett Tomlin You can prepare your rebuttals. Don't you love when you give foreign intelligence officials extra time to prepare their rebuttals to questions about human rights abuses raised by U.S. senators? Apparently, Nadine and Bob do. Two days after this meeting, our friend Will went out and purchased 22 gold birds. Believe it or not, when the cops searched Bob near Dean's house, they found some of those birds. 00:14:46:20 - 00:15:05:13 Bennett Tomlin Allegedly, Nadine had already sold some of the other bars, so I guess the ones they found were kept for sentimental reasons, or because it's useful to have valuable assets you can carry with you on your person, especially if you're concerned that you may not be able to access your banking accounts because you're worried they might be frozen as part of investigations into your behavior. 00:15:05:15 - 00:15:24:23 Bennett Tomlin There's more meetings, of course, for all of 2021, Bob and Nadine started planning a trip to Egypt. Nadine reached out to one of the Egyptian officials she was in contact with to plan it and they intended for it to be an unofficial visit, which would mean no State Department supervision. Will was in Egypt while they were on this trip and would meet up with them while they were there. 00:15:25:01 - 00:15:46:10 Bennett Tomlin However, there was a problem. You see, during the planning process, a staff member for the Senate Foreign Relations Committee reached out to the U.S. Embassy in Cairo. And once that happened, it became an official trip. And this was panic inducing for the Egyptian official who desperately texted Nadine to warn, I will probably lose my job, presumably meaning lose and making a typo. 00:15:46:15 - 00:16:10:19 Bennett Tomlin And S.O.S.. Nadine forwarded these messages to Bob. I wonder why an official trip to meet with this official would mean this official would lose his job. Mysteries we may never solve in these very legitimate foreign relations. After they returned from this trip, they were picked up from the airport by Fred's driver. Later that day, Bob would search for How much is one kilo of gold worth? 00:16:10:21 - 00:16:13:04 Bennett Tomlin There's still more, though, I promise, we're getting closer. 00:16:13:04 - 00:16:26:01 Bennett Tomlin Going back to 2019 for a minute. Allegedly, Will and Jose bought a Mercedes-Benz convertible for Nadine. In December 2018, Nadine was in a car crash, totaled her car. She kept texting Will to complain about the fact she did not have a car. 00:16:26:01 - 00:16:47:02 Bennett Tomlin Contemporaneously, Jose had an employee who he referred to as a relative who was being investigated in New Jersey. This employee was being charged with insurance fraud related to a policy which was brokered by one of Jose's companies. This was after Jose had already had his brush with the law for misappropriating premium payments, which had caused him to lose his insurance broker license. 00:16:47:04 - 00:17:16:17 Bennett Tomlin January 2019 Nadine had been without her car for about a month and invites Will and Jose to come over for dinner with her in a pub, but only Will can make it. After the dinner Will immediately sent Nadine a bunch of text messages about this prosecution of this employee, which again, Nadine eventually deleted for some reason. Two days after this dinner, Bob contacted a senior prosecutor who is overseeing the investigation and allegedly tried to get them to drop the investigation or find some kind of plea deal or better outcome. 00:17:16:19 - 00:17:39:03 Bennett Tomlin Nadine had prepped him for this call by sending over information from Will to Bob to help him understand the case. And eventually both Bob and Nadine deleted all their text messages about this. Once Bob made this call, Jose and Will started working on getting her the car, something which excited Nadine so much that she texted Will to say All is great. 00:17:39:05 - 00:17:57:11 Bennett Tomlin I'm so excited to get a car next week. However, it took a little bit longer to sort out the car. The next month Nadine called Jose and talked to him for about 20 minutes. After that, Jose texted Nadine to say, I am real. I will stand by my word. Two weeks later, has a text and deemed the information for a Benz dealer. 00:17:57:17 - 00:18:18:14 Bennett Tomlin Nadine got in touch with them, shared a couple of different color schemes with her husband, and then a few days later, she texted the salesperson to say that Jose would be coming to pick up the car. Jose texted someone in Spanish to say he needed 15 K in cash and later that very same day, Nadine texted our friend Jose to say, You are a miracle worker who makes dreams come true. 00:18:18:16 - 00:18:43:20 Bennett Tomlin I will always remember that. The very next day, Nadine called Bob to let him know that she had to meet with Jose. And then Jose allegedly gave her $15,000 in cash in a parking lot. The day after that, Nadine allegedly bought the card using the 15 K in cash and financing the rest. She apparently lied about her employment and income on the financing sheet, but that would not be an issue because Jose had a business associate of his make the payments. 00:18:43:22 - 00:18:51:23 Bennett Tomlin Nonetheless, she had a new car. And later that day Jose asked her, Are you happy? And she responded, I will never forget this. 00:18:51:23 - 00:18:57:12 Bennett Tomlin After this car was taken care of, they realized that the criminal investigation into Jose's employee was still a problem. 00:18:57:17 - 00:19:13:14 Bennett Tomlin A New Jersey detective was trying to interview the accused, so they realized they needed Bob to reach out again. Hosseini team met at the very end of July 2019, and the very next morning Jose sent a variety of texts which again seem incriminating. 00:19:13:14 - 00:19:19:02 Bennett Tomlin he told her that they need to make things go away and that they can still stop this. 00:19:19:02 - 00:19:26:01 Bennett Tomlin Nadine in kind, told him that she would address it first thing tomorrow morning or tonight, depending on when he is home. 00:19:26:01 - 00:19:35:00 Bennett Tomlin We have good reason to think she got a chance to talk to Bob because Bob's Google searches showed a search for the agency behind the investigation. After this conversation 00:19:35:00 - 00:20:00:05 Bennett Tomlin In September, Bob had met with the official overseeing this investigation and then met with Jose in his apartment. Jose left that meeting feeling optimistic and texted one of his business associates that there had been a good meeting between Bob and the official overseeing the investigation. Jose was still nervous, though, and apparently spent the next several weeks texting Nadine asking for updates and saying that he needed peace. 00:20:00:07 - 00:20:20:23 Bennett Tomlin This peaked at the end of October when Jose texted Nadine and apparently said, I always text you on Monday in case you have an update. I just need peace. After this, Bob called Jose. Right after that call ended. Jose texted Nadine and told her I just got a call and I am very happy person. Few days later, they were able to meet up and celebrate. 00:20:20:23 - 00:20:50:07 Bennett Tomlin Apparently. Believe it or not, this is not the only criminal investigation that Bob allegedly involved in. That's right. There's another. Remember Will's friend, Fred Daibes, the guy behind Mariner's Bank. As I mentioned, he was being pursued related to false representations he made to the bank in order to get a loan. Allegedly, Bob intervened in that prosecution as well, including apparently recommending that Biden nominate a new U.S. attorney for New Jersey who he thought he would more easily be able to influence. 00:20:50:09 - 00:21:04:10 Bennett Tomlin Allegedly, Bob met with a lawyer he was considering supporting in December 2020. And during this meeting, he told the attorney that he thought the prosecution of Fred Daibes was bad and apparently specifically said he hoped this candidate would look into it. 00:21:04:10 - 00:21:07:20 Bennett Tomlin this was allegedly the only case he brought up in the course of the meeting. 00:21:07:22 - 00:21:32:12 Bennett Tomlin The lawyer told Bob that he thought he would need to recuse himself because he had done work related to Fred while in private practice. After this, Bob allegedly told him that he would not be nominating him for this position. Allegedly, Fred had a different individual who he thought could be good for his case. And an advisor to Bob met with this other candidate to discuss whether or not he would have to recuse himself. 00:21:32:14 - 00:21:53:13 Bennett Tomlin This adviser would later tell Bob that this candidate would not recuse himself, eventually texting him to say, I think if you call the candidate, you'll be comfortable with what he says. This candidate was recommended by Bob and according to the indictment, was sworn in as U.S. attorney in December 2021. These facts together tell us the candidate was almost certainly Philip R Sellinger. 00:21:53:18 - 00:22:14:12 Bennett Tomlin Sellinger has been a fundraiser for Bob in the past. Unfortunately for Fred, Philip went to the DOJ and asked them if he should recuse himself, and he was told to recuse himself. Lucky for Fred, though, the trial, which had been scheduled for January 2022, was delayed due to COVID. The very same day it was delayed, Fred texted Nadine and asked how Bob was doing. 00:22:14:14 - 00:22:33:08 Bennett Tomlin Nadine shared that he was fixated on the trial and Fred told her, Good. I don't want him to be upset over it. This is not his fault. He was amazing in all he did. He's an amazing friend. And as loyal as they come, he continued and asked, How is the shoulder? Is he sleeping? Let me know if I can get him a recliner. 00:22:33:08 - 00:22:34:15 Bennett Tomlin It helped me sleep. 00:22:34:15 - 00:22:40:05 Bennett Tomlin Allegedly, Fred did end up buying him a recliner, so at least Bob will be well rested for his defense. 00:22:40:05 - 00:22:41:19 Bennett Tomlin In early 2022, 00:22:41:20 - 00:23:06:10 Bennett Tomlin Fred's case has been delayed, Sellinger recused. So Bob calls our friend Philip and asks him who the assistant U.S. attorney overseeing the case now is. The next day, Fred and Bob together apparently called Fred's lawyer and complained that he was not trying hard enough to get the case dismissed. Two days later, Fred's driver called Nadine twice. Nadine then texted Fred to say thank you Christmas in January. 00:23:06:12 - 00:23:17:05 Bennett Tomlin Fred's driver's fingerprints were apparently all over an envelope full of thousands of dollars of cash they found in the search of Bob and Nadine's house. That envelope also had Fred's address and DNA. 00:23:17:05 - 00:23:24:05 Bennett Tomlin 2 hours after Nadine texted Fred to thank him for Christmas in January, Bob decided to call the attorney overseeing Fred's case. 00:23:24:07 - 00:23:41:13 Bennett Tomlin However, this attorney was not willing to have very long calls with the first lasting 10 seconds and the second lasting a minute and a half. During the same period. Apparently, Bob asked his adviser to once again reject to fill up to try to figure out why he had recused himself. But the adviser was smart enough to say no. 00:23:41:15 - 00:24:01:14 Bennett Tomlin Well, at least immediately in March, the adviser was going to have lunch with Philip and told Bob. And Bob apparently told the adviser that he was frustrated with the way the prosecution of Fred was going and that he wanted to make sure that Fred was given all due process. Once again, apparently the adviser decided it was best not to pass along this message. 00:24:01:14 - 00:24:25:23 Bennett Tomlin At the end of March, Nadine texted Fred to thank him for introducing her to a jeweler, and she provided the jeweler with two one kilogram bars of gold. Interestingly, the serial numbers on the bars corresponded to ones which were at one point owned by Fred to put a cherry on the top of all this, the search of Nadine and Bob's house turned up two one kilogram bars of gold, nine one ounce bars of gold, all with serial numbers corresponding to bars that Fred used to have. 00:24:26:05 - 00:24:45:23 Bennett Tomlin The search also found hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash, ten envelopes full of cash with fingerprints and DNA of Fred. So to summarize, Bob and Edwin allegedly accepted massive quantities of gold, cash and convertibles in exchange for Egyptian military aid and weapons supporting a monopoly they financially benefited from and interference in criminal cases. 00:24:51:07 - 00:24:59:21 Bennett Tomlin In the interest of fairness, I think it's important that I share Bob's statement for my own sanity. I'm going to say his words in ridiculous voices and interject after each paragraph 00:24:59:21 - 00:25:14:05 Bennett Tomlin For years, forces behind the scenes have repeatedly attempted to silence my voice and dig my political grave. Since this investigation was leaked nearly a year ago, there has been an active smear campaign of anonymous sources and innuendos to create an air of impropriety where none exists. 00:25:14:05 - 00:25:21:23 Bennett Tomlin Can you imagine there being an air of impropriety just because a fraudster bought my wife a car and gave me a bunch of gold and a recliner and lots of cash? 00:25:21:23 - 00:25:34:17 Bennett Tomlin The excesses of these prosecutors is apparent. They have misrepresented the normal work of a Congressional office. On top of that, not content with making false claims against me, 00:25:34:19 - 00:25:39:17 Bennett Tomlin they have attacked my wife for the longstanding friendships she had before she and I even met. 00:25:39:17 - 00:25:56:06 Bennett Tomlin I'm going to be honest. I don't think it's the friendships they have a problem with. I think many spouses of senators have friends, and at least some of them are not engaged in corruption, though some of them are. I mean, Paul Pelosi certainly has some suspiciously well-timed stock trades. 00:25:56:08 - 00:26:10:01 Bennett Tomlin As for whether or not this is the normal work of a congressional office, there are, I think, two possible interpretations. This is grossly non normal conduct, as it plainly appears to be. And this is a Trumpian attempt to redefine norms 00:26:10:01 - 00:26:15:13 Bennett Tomlin or two, this is normal conduct. And we need to send far more politicians to prison. 00:26:15:15 - 00:26:37:01 Bennett Tomlin As for my interpretation, there is a lot of gross misconduct in our political chambers and it fills me with an incadescent rage. So if Menendez is abnormal, then I hope he is prosecuted for the behavior and I hope he has the opportunity to defend himself fully against these allegations in court. If Menendez’s behavior is normal, then I hope he is prosecuted for the behavior. 00:26:37:06 - 00:27:02:18 Bennett Tomlin And I hope, well, he is taking the opportunity to defend himself fully against these allegations in court. He chooses to reveal exactly which other members of Congress are participate in this type of normal behavior. Every single Congress member receiving kilos of gold, envelopes full of cash, and Benz convertibles should also receive the opportunity to defend themselves in court as soon as possible. 00:27:02:19 - 00:27:04:23 Bennett Tomlin This behavior is unacceptable. 00:27:04:23 - 00:27:17:03 Bennett Tomlin Those behind this campaign simply cannot accept that a first-generation Latino American from humble beginnings could rise to be a U.S. Senator and serve with honor and distinction. Even worse, they see me as an obstacle in the way of their broader political goals. 00:27:17:03 - 00:27:21:12 Bennett Tomlin I honestly cannot figure out which political bully we're supposed to believe Bob is standing in the way of. 00:27:21:12 - 00:27:42:05 Bennett Tomlin He’s a Democrat senator in a very narrow, Dem majority. Maybe there's something inside baseball you're missing. The indictment came down from Damian Williams, who was recommended by Schumer. Maybe the comment here is meant to be an allusion to the very insider baseball ripples in the Democratic Party, after Menendez replaced Schumer as chair of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee in 2009. 00:27:42:07 - 00:28:00:14 Bennett Tomlin Wikipedia says Schumer defended Menendez as chair but even defends can be offense in the backwards world of politics. Maybe it's a Sheldon Silver thing. I'm not a good enough historian or political scientist to figure out what's going on with the second sentence here, but I think it's basically the same as George Santos saying this is a political attack, right? 00:28:00:19 - 00:28:05:13 Bennett Tomlin It's meant to distract, delay and deny not to actually be a clear, coherent statement. 00:28:05:13 - 00:28:24:05 Bennett Tomlin I have been falsely accused before because I refused to back down to the powers that be and the people of New Jersey were able to see through the smoke and mirrors and recognize I was innocent. I have worked every day to repay their trust by fighting to create jobs, strengthen public safety, update infrastructure, and reduce costs for New Jersey families. 00:28:24:07 - 00:28:41:04 Bennett Tomlin I have also stood steadfast against dictators around the globe – whether they be in Iran, Cuba, Turkey, or elsewhere – fighting against the forces of appeasement and standing with those who stand for freedom and democracy. I remain focused on continuing this important work and will not be distracted by baseless allegations. 00:28:41:04 - 00:28:45:03 Bennett Tomlin Oh don't worry Bob, we're going to talk a little bit about those past allegations. 00:28:45:03 - 00:28:58:08 Bennett Tomlin They wrote these charges as they wanted; the facts are not as presented. Prosecutors did that the last time and look what a trial demonstrates. People should remember that before accepting the prosecutor’s version. 00:28:58:08 - 00:29:16:04 Bennett Tomlin This was a well written indictment. SDNY is quite good at that. To give you a little peek behind the curtain on how the news sausage is made, or at least how it seems to happen, prosecutors and lawyers in high profile civil cases will, to my perception, write indictments and these cases for the media. 00:29:16:06 - 00:29:37:14 Bennett Tomlin They will often seem to try to lay out the story in the way of reporter would want it to be laid out and make sure to include salacious details that makes it easier for the news to run the story. And you can always reference the indictment itself as the source. You throw in a few allegations and alleged, well, you're saying these things and you're ready to go. 00:29:37:16 - 00:29:57:12 Bennett Tomlin In a sense, this video is an example of how a well-written indictment makes that process easier. Someone like me is able to more easily pull out these specific texts, emails and other details that are included. And you should absolutely be aware that this is a thing that can be a secondary goal of an indictment. Though that's also the rub here. 00:29:57:14 - 00:30:10:10 Bennett Tomlin We do have the text messages, and the emails, and the timelines, and the pictures of the gold seized from their house. That provides us with a great deal of insight into things which seem extraordinarily indefensible. 00:30:10:10 - 00:30:27:15 Bob Menendez To my supporters, friends and the community at large, I ask that you recall the other times the prosecutors got it wrong and that you reserve judgment. I am confident that this matter will be successfully resolved once all of the facts are presented and my fellow New Jerseyans will see this for what it is. 00:30:27:18 - 00:30:32:20 Bennett Tomlin I ask that you recall the gold bars and hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash. 00:30:32:20 - 00:30:52:21 Speaker 1 Quick update from the editing bay. Bob Menendez has issued another statement where he explains why he had an envelope stuffed full of tens of thousands of dollars of cash in his closet. And the statement he provided was For 30 years I have withdrawn thousands of dollars in cash from my personal savings account, which I have kept for emergencies. 00:30:53:02 - 00:31:21:01 Speaker 1 And because of the history of my family facing confiscation in Cuba. Now, this may seem old fashioned, but these were monies drawn from my personal savings account based on the income that I have lawfully derived over those 30 years. What I have to say to this is that's wonderful news. If this is true, then it will be very easy to get the bank records that demonstrate that series of withdrawals from Bob's account without matching deposits from these people, 00:31:21:01 - 00:31:39:22 Speaker 1 he's accused of taking bribes from. Once we see that, maybe Bob will have a chance. My suspicion is they're not going to have bank records showing that series of withdrawals. But perhaps I'm wrong and Bob is right and he will remain the senior senator for New Jersey. Let's find out. 00:31:39:22 - 00:31:45:17 Bennett Tomlin Now, Bob, you wanted to talk about those previous charges. Let's talk about those previous charges. 00:31:51:01 - 00:32:03:16 Bennett Tomlin Previously, Bob was charged in 2015 by prosecutors for conspiracy, bribery and fraud. They allege that he accepted $600,000 in bribes, as well as private jet flights and hotel suites in exchange for favors. 00:32:03:16 - 00:32:05:21 Bennett Tomlin To keep this video at least slightly focused, 00:32:05:21 - 00:32:11:16 Bennett Tomlin I say looking at these 6000 word count while I write the script. The top line summary of this case appears to be 00:32:11:16 - 00:32:18:20 Bennett Tomlin Salomon Melgen, a Florida ophthalmologist provided the previously mentioned valuables and was promising to give $60,000 to his campaign. 00:32:18:20 - 00:32:23:05 Bennett Tomlin Melgen, had bought a Dominican Republic company which was effectively defunct, 00:32:23:05 - 00:32:48:20 Bennett Tomlin but which still had a contract for inspecting ships coming into port. Bob then allegedly pressured the State Department to pressure the Dominican Republic into enforcing this contract so that Melgen could profit. Separately, Bob and his staff supposedly spoke to top officials at Medicare when Medicare was investigating Melgen's billing practices. Bob was also accused of specifically helping Melgen's romantic partners receive visas. 00:32:48:20 - 00:33:02:04 Bennett Tomlin case went to trial. Hung jury mistrial. He was acquitted on several of the charges and then DOJ dropped charges in 2018 lining up pretty close with when this indictment starts. 00:33:02:04 - 00:33:09:18 Bennett Tomlin I want to add that his failure to be criminally prosecuted for this behavior does not mean that what he did was okay. 00:33:09:20 - 00:33:20:13 Bennett Tomlin I also went to add the ophthalmologist who was providing the private jet flights did end up convicted of 67 counts of health care fraud and was sentenced to 17 years in prison. 00:33:20:13 - 00:33:29:01 Bennett Tomlin This sentence was, as is a common theme in the show, commuted by Donald Trump, joining the illustrious ranks of Roger Stone and Rod Blagojevich. 00:33:29:01 - 00:33:37:21 Bennett Tomlin At the very least, it seems that Bob feels very comfortable being very close to very rich friends who are often predisposed to give him and his wife large gifts. 00:33:37:21 - 00:33:44:12 Bennett Tomlin What's striking to me is how he is friends with an almost George Santos esque number of known fraudsters. 00:33:44:14 - 00:33:49:10 Bennett Tomlin And this isn't the only time we see Bob intervene in this way. There was another case 00:33:49:10 - 00:33:50:09 Speaker 1 In 2010. 00:33:50:09 - 00:33:57:11 Bennett Tomlin not one where he was criminally indicted, but one that does speed how much Bob likes to advocate for his friends and supporters. 00:33:57:11 - 00:34:09:09 Bennett Tomlin Bob wrote to Ben Bernanke during the great financial crisis to ask him to approve an acquisition of First Bank Americano and eight out of the 15 directors of First Bank Americano were donors to Bob. 00:34:09:11 - 00:34:20:02 Bennett Tomlin The FDIC report on this bank is brutal, basically suggesting a huge number of their practices were irresponsible and just frankly, not good banking. 00:34:20:02 - 00:34:22:02 Bennett Tomlin So where does all of this leave us? 00:34:28:12 - 00:34:35:20 Bennett Tomlin Bob has stepped down as chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee just as he stepped down last time he was indicted from his committees. That is not enough. 00:34:35:20 - 00:34:40:07 Bennett Tomlin New Jersey deserves better than a poorly written parody of a New Jersey senator. 00:34:40:09 - 00:34:43:03 Bennett Tomlin But to the people with power, agree with me. 00:34:43:03 - 00:34:49:21 Bennett Tomlin Benjamin Cardin, Democratic senator from Maryland and now chairman for the committee, is the only Democratic member of the committee who has issued a statement. 00:34:49:21 - 00:34:58:01 Bennett Tomlin He said Senator Bob Menendez entered the U.S. Senate only one year ahead of me. We served in the House of Representatives together for nearly a decade. 00:34:58:03 - 00:35:15:13 Bennett Tomlin He has left his mark on American diplomacy and national security. As a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and especially as chair. I encourage everyone to allow the legal process to move forward without prejudice. Senator Menendez has a right to respond aggressively in court to the current charges, and I am confident that he will do so. 00:35:15:13 - 00:35:16:21 Bennett Tomlin I want to highlight something here. 00:35:17:03 - 00:35:29:05 Bennett Tomlin Regardless of whether or not Bob resigns, he will still have his right to defend himself in court. You're going to hear a lot of equivocating on that. Democrats can call on someone to resign even without them being convicted. 00:35:29:05 - 00:35:39:08 Bennett Tomlin Quick update from the editing booth here. Cory Booker has a bit of bravery in him and has come out and called for Bob to resign. He stated in a new statement. 00:35:39:08 - 00:35:44:16 Bennett Tomlin For nearly a decade, I've worked in the Senate alongside Senator Menendez as New Jersey's junior senator. 00:35:44:16 - 00:36:12:16 Bennett Tomlin I imagine that I've had more professional experience with him than most others, and I've witnessed his extraordinary work and boundless work ethic. I've consistently found Senator Menendez to be intellectually gifted, tough, passionate and deeply empathetic. We developed a working relationship and a friendship that I value and believe has furthered our effectiveness in serving New Jersey. Senator Menendez is again facing a federal indictment, one that contains shocking allegations of corruption and specific, disturbing details of wrongdoing. 00:36:12:18 - 00:36:32:15 Bennett Tomlin I found the allegations hard to reconcile with the person I know. It's not surprising to me that Senator Menendez is again determined to mount a vigorous defense. And I still believe he, like anyone involved with our criminal justice system, deserves our presumption of innocence until proven guilty, a jury of his peers will make the ultimate decision as to whether he is criminally guilty. 00:36:32:21 - 00:36:58:13 Bennett Tomlin There is, however, another higher standard for public officials, one not of criminal law, but of common ideals. As senators, we operate in the public trust. That trust is essential to our ability to do our work and perform our duties for our constituents. The details of the allegations against Senator Menendez are of such nature that the faith and trust of New Jerseyans, as well as those he must work with in order to be effective, have been shaken to the core. 00:36:58:15 - 00:37:22:05 Bennett Tomlin As Senator Menendez prepares to mount his legal defense, he has stated that he will not resign. Senator Menendez fiercely asserts his innocence and it is therefore understandable that he believes stepping down is patently unfair. But I believe this is a mistake. Stepping down is not an admission of guilt, but an acknowledgment that holding public office often demands tremendous sacrifices at great personal cost. 00:37:22:10 - 00:37:40:22 Bennett Tomlin Senator Menendez has made these sacrifices in the past to serve, and in this case, he must do so again. I believe stepping down is best for those Senator Menendez has spent his life serving. I wanted to add in that additional context, and I want to commend Cory Booker for coming out and saying what needs to be said. 00:37:40:23 - 00:37:46:03 Bennett Tomlin Every other Democratic senator on the committee has no statement, at least on their websites, at the time of this writing. 00:37:46:05 - 00:38:00:00 Bennett Tomlin This includes Senator Jeanne Shaheen, Democratic senator from New Hampshire, Christopher Coons, Democratic Senator from Delaware, Christopher Murphy, Democratic Senator from Connecticut. Tim Kaine, Democratic Senator from Virginia. Jeff Merkley, Democratic Senator from Oregon. 00:38:00:00 - 00:38:05:03 Bennett Tomlin Brian Schatz Democratic Senator from Hawaii. Chris Van Hollen, Democratic Senator from Maryland. 00:38:05:07 - 00:38:17:13 Bennett Tomlin And Tammy Duckworth, the Democratic Senator from my home state of Illinois. So we cannot look to colleagues on this committee for bravery. Maybe Chuck Schumer, the most powerful Democratic senator, has the bravery to call on Bob to step away. 00:38:17:13 - 00:38:24:16 Bennett Tomlin Schumer has issued a statement where he says Bob Menendez has been a dedicated public servant and is always fighting hard for the people of New Jersey. 00:38:24:22 - 00:38:40:04 Bennett Tomlin He has a right to due process and a fair trial. Senator Menendez has rightly decided to step down temporarily from his position as chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee until the matter has been resolved. Notable in this statement are the words temporarily and resolved. 00:38:40:06 - 00:38:54:12 Bennett Tomlin Now, before I launch into my rant, I should be clear some others have had the guts to call on him to resign. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, a Democratic representative from New York, has stated that she believes it is in the best interest for Senator Menendez to resign. 00:38:54:12 - 00:39:03:05 Bennett Tomlin With that out of the way, it's rant time. Bob is literally Googling how much the gold he's getting from a bank fraudster is worth. 00:39:03:10 - 00:39:24:23 Bennett Tomlin We have the text messages from his wife saying, here's my business. I'm going to put in the middle of all these deals. We have envelopes full of cash. A new Mercedes Benz convertible and these Democrats are too cowardly to police their own. They are so afraid that any waves in the Senate before 2024 will risk their position. They are trapped by their fear dominated by it, controlled and owned by it. 00:39:25:01 - 00:39:51:02 Bennett Tomlin They should all come together and call without pause for Bob to resign. And if Bob is telling the truth that kilos of gold is something that every congressperson is receiving. Well, then as a society we have some problems to solve. So just to really end this out. Fuck, Bob. Fuck Chuck Schumer. Fuck these disingenuous congresspeople and their complete lack of ability to recognize the importance of dealing with corruption before it completely destroys our democratic process. 00:39:51:04 - 00:40:07:22 Bennett Tomlin Senator Bob Menendez should resign and we must continue to push against corruption. Far too many of our leaders are okay with graft, graft and outright bribery. I am not okay with it when it’s Santos, when it's Trump, or when it's Menendez. And you should not be okay with it either.
