Menendez braces for charges

Federal prosecutors are expected to file corruption charges against Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) and a donor this week, potentially as early as Wednesday, according to multiple reports.

The charges center on Menendez’s dealings with Salomon Melgen and whether the senator used his office to help Melgen’s various business interests. The Department of Justice is close to filing charges against both men, according to The Associated press.

{mosads}Politico reported that the DOJ investigation spans Menendez’s entire time Congress, since 1993, and that the senator’s lawyers aren’t fully cooperating with investigators, citing a law that protects lawmakers from recourse over actions they take during legitimate legislative business.

The charges have been looming all month, since news outlets reported that the Justice Department started investigating whether Menendez received gifts from Melgen in exchange for official favors.

Melgen and his family have donated more than a half million dollars to Menendez’s campaigns over the years, and the senator previously had to reimburse the doctor about $70,000 for improperly billed flights to the Dominican Republic.

Menendez denied any wrongdoing in a press conference earlier this month, declaring: “I am not going anywhere.”

“I have always conducted myself appropriately and in accordance with the law,” he said.