Indicted Sen. Menendez criticizes foreign charges as 'misuse of the grand jury system'

Indicted New Jersey Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez on Tuesday vehemently denied his alleged involvement in foreign bribery schemes involving Egypt and Qatar, slamming the charges he faces as being a "misuse of the grand jury system."

After being initially indicted in September on bribery charges, prosecutors amended the indictment of Menendez to add more charges in October, including how he allegedly conspired to act as a foreign agent on behalf of Egypt. The indictment was once again amended last week to accuse the Democratic senator of allegedly being involved in a bribery scheme with Qatar. 

"By filing three indictments," Menendez said on the Senate floor Tuesday, "it allows the government to keep the ... sensational story in the press and seeks to convict me in the court of public opinion."

Despite demands from his own party to resign, he showed no sign of doing so, arguing that the calls to resign came out before any evidence has been introduced in court. 

"I understand how the government's accusations may in the most sensational and purposely damning way possible, its misuse of the grand jury system to bring superseding indictments – even though it had all the information they alleged in the beginning – can be a source of concern and contempt by some of my colleagues, the political establishment, and most importantly the people of New Jersey," he said. 

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