BETHLEHEM, Pa. — In the hours following Sen. Bob Menendez’s (D-NJ) Tuesday conviction on all counts of corruption, multiple national Democrats called for him to step down — but one name remains notably absent from that list.
Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) was one of the first public figures on the left to condemn Menendez’s actions when the longtime New Jerseyan was charged last fall.
But the burly Pennsylvanian has yet to make a public statement on the downfall of who he calls “Bobby Gold Bars.”
CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images
“Senator Menendez should not be a U.S. Senator,” Fetterman’s office said Oct. 12. “He should have been gone long ago. It is time for every one of my colleagues in the Senate to join me in expelling Senator Menendez.”
“We cannot have an alleged foreign agent in the United States Senate,” the statement continued. “This is not a close call.”
Two days later, Fetterman made another push for Menendez to step aside.
“He’s entitled to the presumption of innocence under our system, but he is not entitled to continue to wield influence over national policy, especially given the serious and specific nature of the allegations. I hope he chooses an honorable exit and focuses on his trial,” Fetterman said.
In December, Fetterman hoped Menendez would give the ultimate holiday gift.
“Bobby Gold Bars is punishing competent and outstanding public servants to distract from his impending penal career move,” he said, calling on the latter to “retract your petty hold, then RESIGN as the perfect Christmas present for the people of NJ and the U.S. Senate.”
As of Wednesday afternoon, Fetterman’s most recent post on Twitter condemning the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump.
He hasn’t mentioned Menendez.
His office hasn’t released any statements regarding the conviction nor returned The Post’s request for comment.
Fetterman’s fellow Pennsylvania senator, Democrat Bob Casey, quickly called on Menendez to resign after Tuesday’s verdict — even calling for his expulsion should he refuse.
“As I said when he was charged, public service is a sacred trust and Senator Menendez has broken that trust,” Casey tweeted Tuesday afternoon. “Now that a jury of his peers has found him guilty on all 16 charges, including acting as a foreign agent, Senator Menendez should resign or face expulsion from the Senate.”
Though New Jersey Democrats dumped Menendez by nominating Rep. Andy Kim to replace him, Bobby Gold Bars is still seeking re-election this fall.
A third candidate, Cape May County developer Curtis Bashaw, is running on the Republican side as polls show the Garden State getting unusually competitive.
Both Kim and Bashaw have called on Menendez to resign or face expulsion from the Senate, with the latter calling the verdict “another sordid chapter of New Jersey corruption.”
