"US Senator Menendez Indicted on Bribery Charges, Faces Calls for Resignation"

U.S. Senator Bob Menendez and his wife have been charged with accepting bribes from three New Jersey businessmen, which could complicate Democrats' efforts to maintain their slim majority in the U.S. Senate in next year's elections. Menendez has temporarily stepped down as chairman of the Senate's Foreign Relations Committee, but has stated that he will not resign. Prosecutors allege that Menendez accepted cash and gold bars in exchange for using his influence to benefit the government of Egypt and interfere with law enforcement investigations. Menendez denies the charges and claims that prosecutors have mischaracterized routine legislative work. The investigation marks the third time Menendez has been investigated by federal prosecutors, although he has never been convicted.