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You are here: Home / Corruption / Will McDonnell Ruling Save Menendez?

Will McDonnell Ruling Save Menendez?

October 16, 2017 at 7:11 am EDT By Taegan Goddard Leave a Comment

“The bribery trial of Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) has reached a critical moment, with the judge overseeing the case deciding whether to dismiss a big chunk of the corruption allegations facing the New Jersey Democrat,” Politico reports.

“U.S. District Judge William Walls stunned federal prosecutors last week when he expressed doubts over whether the Justice Department’s bribery charges against Menendez should move forward in light of the Supreme Court’s 2016 decision throwing out the conviction of former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell. That ruling impacted the legal definition of bribery, including the ‘string of benefits’ theory used by prosecutors to charge Menendez.”

“Walls’ bombshell left open the possibility that Menendez could escape the most serious allegations against him, possibly even allowing him to remain in office.”

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Filed Under: Corruption Tagged With: Robert Menendez

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About Political Wire

goddard-bw-snapshotTaegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.

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