Sen. Bob Menendez's "baggage" continues to pile up.
After reports came in this week that the associates of one of the senator's major donors, Charles Kushner, were charged with fraud by a federal grand jury, the National Republican Senatorial Committee had to add an update to its "Bob's Baggage" website, created only a week ago (which I reported in a previous post).
"Bob Menendez's baggage keeps getting heavier," said Dan Ronayne, NRSC Spokesman. "Updating this website is becoming a full-time job."
The Star-Ledger of New Jersey reports:
"An indictment returned in Newark said Kushner's brother-in-law and business partner, Richard Stadtmauer, conspired with others to illegally write off $5 million worth of gifts, entertainment, political and charitable contributions and capital costs as deductible expenses."
Oh, but it gets worse:
"Kushner, 51, pleaded guilty two years ago, admitting he made illegal donations in the name of his partners, wrote off personal expenses as business deductions, and retaliated against an FBI witness, his own sister, by hiring a prostitute to seduce her husband in a videotaped tryst."
How low can you go?
The Record reported in 2002 that Bob Menendez had collected "$49,500 from Charles Kushner, his family, companies, and business associates."
And, last but not least:
And, according to the New York Post on February 20 of this year: "[Kushner] was the single largest source of campaign cash over the past 20 years for the state's new U.S. Senator, Bob Menendez."
So there you have it.
And as Ronayne notes: "The Kushner scandal isn't the only one linked to Menendez. Visit www.BobsBaggage.com for more information on Bob Menendez's ethical missteps and the loud warnings sounded by the media and Democrats to Governor Corzine about appointing him to the Senate."
