Senator Clueless? What was NJ's Bob Menendez thinking in dealing with Egypt? | Kelly

Is Bob Menendez a “foreign agent”?

Maybe. Answering that question will be the task of a federal jury in New York City sometime next year.

But is Menendez clueless?

We don’t need a jury or even a trial to figure that out.

Menendez, the senior Democratic U.S. senator from New Jersey, is facing yet another charge from federal prosecutors — that he conspired with his wife, Nadine, and another man to illegally carry on as a representative of the government of Egypt.

This probably isn’t spying — not in the James Bond style, anyway. But it’s close.

A new window into American political sleaze

Last week’s superseding federal indictment of Menendez, his wife, Nadine, and a mysterious Egyptian American businessman named Wael Hana adds a charge of “conspiracy for a public official to act as a foreign agent."

That may seem complicated. It’s not. This new charge essentially opens a window into a sleazy side of American politics.

In this culture, it doesn’t matter if you are elected to office or appointed or just hanging around as somebody’s spouse or new friend. Power and advice from elected officials are seen as commodities that can be traded for gifts.

Read the new indictment: Menendez charged with acting as a foreign agent for Egypt

Call it lobbying. Call it influence peddling. Federal prosecutors pursuing Menendez, his wife, Hana and two other alleged wheeler-dealers from the Garden State initially labeled this an old-fashioned bribery conspiracy.

But the new charge that Menendez reportedly conspired as a foreign agent with his wife and the otherwise flunky businessman Hana, who seemed to have all sorts of ties with top Egyptian officials, takes this narrative to a much different place.

This is no longer just a sleazy story about taking gifts — like that of former U.S. Sen. Robert Torricelli, another New Jersey Democrat, who was forced to resign in 2002 after his colleagues on the Senate ethics committee slammed him for taking too many freebies.

Unlike Menendez, Torricelli escaped being indicted after a lengthy investigation by the FBI and federal prosecutors. But at least Torricelli apologized — and had the good sense to quit when polls showed that voters were about to toss him from office.

Fifteen years later, as Menendez was successfully fighting off other charges in an 11-week trial in federal court in Newark, New Jersey, for taking too much cash and free vacation trips on private jets from a wealthy Florida eye doctor, Torricelli tried to convince fellow Democrats to force Menendez into exile and give him another chance in the Senate. The responses from Democrats could kindly be described as bellowing howls of derisive laughter.

Menendez, who may now usurp Ted Cruz, the Texas Republican, as the Senate’s most tone-deaf member, refuses to step down amid these latest charges. Menendez is a proud man. During his increasingly rare public appearances, he often mentions that he is “fighting” for New Jersey. He also predicts he will be reelected next year to another six-year term.

If he carries through on his threat-promise to run again, Menendez will be campaigning as he sits in a federal courtroom in lower Manhattan, listening to evidence of how well he is “fighting” for the good people of New Jersey. Think here of those howls of laughter once directed at Torricelli and you’ll get an idea of the kind of support Menendez has from Democrats in New Jersey and across the nation.

If he runs again, Menendez will be confronted with his own cluelessness — and whether he can explain his bizarre choices.

Let’s start with the senator’s alleged decision to meet with at least two top Egyptian spies.

As reported by The New York Times, these guys from the land of the pyramids and human rights abuses were not run-of-the-mill diplomats in search of a good Cuban cigar and a bottle of bourbon. These were flat-out, creep-show spies who worked for Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, whom Donald Trump once called his “favorite dictator.” How Menendez, the longtime Democratic stalwart and sometimes chairman of the prestigious Senate Foreign Relations Committee, did not see the danger of cavorting with these dudes remains to be seen.

Menendez reportedly met with several of these officials at a Washington, D.C., steakhouse where someone — the feds? — snapped his picture.

Consider that photo, which was featured prominently in last week’s superseding indictment, as Exhibit A in the "Bob Menendez clueless” file. The lesson here is that when you talk to foreign intelligence officials, you may want to consider the possibility that you are crossing the ethical and legal lines about becoming a "foreign agent." You might also consider telling voters back in New Jersey what exactly you were doing but that's a different matter.

Along those lines, consider also a statement, cited in the superseding indictment, that Nadine Menendez reportedly made to the Egyptians at this steakhouse meeting: "What else can the love of my life do for you?" Keep in mind that this statement was reportedly made during a meeting with at least one Egyptian spy.

What did Menendez do for Egypt?: Menendez charged with working as a foreign agent

What is 'normal' about what Menendez was up to?

Of course, Menendez will likely argue that he was doing nothing wrong. Or, as he explained several weeks ago after the feds dropped the first part of their indictment on him, he was doing the “normal” business of Congress.

Which brings us to these questions:

• What exactly is “normal” about handing the Egyptians sensitive information about the identities of their citizens who work for the U.S. Embassy in Cairo? The Egyptians are known for torturing, threatening or otherwise abusing just about anyone they consider a threat — or perhaps someone they might want to lean on for information. How did Menendez not see the potential danger of giving the Egyptians a list of workers at the U.S. Embassy? And why give up this list, anyway?

• Which brings us to another question for Menendez: Why would he reportedly tip off an Egyptian official to the kinds of questions that other senators might ask when they grilled him about human rights abuses?

• And finally, why would Menendez step in to ghost-write a letter for an Egyptian official to other senators asking that they overlook allegations of human rights abuses?

The heart of the Menendez story is money. The U.S. routinely hands more than $1 billion to Egypt to buy guns, jets and all kinds of high-tech military equipment. Some members of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee understandably wanted to know why America should sign a check for $1 billion to a government that treats some of its citizens like punching bags.

In return for his expertise in helping the Egyptians dodge such questions, federal prosecutors say, Menendez was rewarded with hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash and gold bars as well as a Vision Fitness Suspension Trainer exercise machine to tone his tone-deaf senatorial physique. They say Menendez’s wife, meanwhile, received mortgage payments for the couple’s Englewood Cliff’s split level, a flunky, no-show job and a Mercedes-Benz convertible.

Wael Hana, the alleged go-between for Egypt and the clueless senator from New Jersey, was rewarded with an exclusive, monopoly contract from Egyptian officials to certify halal meat products from America for Muslims. In case you wondered, Hana, a Christian, reportedly has no known experience in Islamic dietary laws or food exporting. But federal prosecutors say he had Menendez “fighting” for his cause.

What’s striking here is that Menendez is not alone in his work as an alleged foreign agent.

From former U.S. Army Gen. Michael Flynn, who was on the payroll of Turkey, to Trump’s former “senior adviser” and son-in-law, Jared Kushner, who was rewarded with a $2 billion investment from Saudi Arabia for his dealings in the Middle East, the grab-for-cash by Americans with access to power is extensive. What's more, the Center for Responsive Politics reports that 460 former members of Congress are now working as paid lobbyists for U.S. businesses, nonprofits or foreign governments. Such is the size of this revolving door of influence peddling.

The difference here is that Menendez did not register as a “foreign agent” or a lobbyist. He allegedly took his gifts while serving the people of New Jersey as their senior senator.

On Monday, when he is scheduled to come again to the federal courthouse in lower Manhattan to face this latest charge, he will likely plead “not guilty.”

But on the charge of just being clueless, Menendez should beg for mercy. He’s guilty.

Mike Kelly is an award-winning columnist for NorthJersey.com, part of the USA TODAY Network, as well as the author of three critically acclaimed nonfiction books and a podcast and documentary film producer. To get unlimited access to his insightful thoughts on how we live life in the Northeast, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

Email: kellym@northjersey.com

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Bob Menendez and Egypt: What was NJ senator thinking?