WASHINGTON — Allies of former Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., have approached the White House on his behalf multiple times since the fall to see if President Joe Biden might be willing to pardon him, according to four people familiar with the discussions. Left with the impression that he won’t receive a pardon from Biden, Menendez has now shifted his focus onto President-elect Donald Trump, three people familiar with the discussions said.
Menendez told people close to him even before the November election that he might have a better chance of securing clemency from Trump, two people with direct knowledge of his comments said. In recent weeks, he has discussed with people close to him whether he might be more successful with Trump if he sought a sentence commutation rather than a full pardon, three people familiar with the discussions said.
Menendez is facing potentially years in prison after he was convicted on federal corruption charges in July, with federal prosecutors last week recommending a sentence of at least 15 years.
Menendez, who pleaded not guilty to the charges, resigned from the Senate in August. He is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 29. His pursuit of a pardon from the president underscores how concerned the 71-year-old is about spending significant time in prison.
Biden and Menendez, both Democrats and former chairmen of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, are not particularly close. Their relationship has been contentious at times, with disagreements over high-profile issues such as Iran and more recently over Biden’s willingness to move toward Republicans on immigration policies, which Menendez called “truly shameful.”
Menendez, along with all Senate Democrats, voted to convict Trump during both of his impeachment trials, which the president-elect is unlikely to easily forget, according to a source close to Trump. But two people familiar with the discussions said the former senator has suggested to people close to him that a rejection of a pardon from Biden might make Trump more inclined to grant him clemency.
Menendez declined to comment.
Representatives for the White House and the Trump team did not respond to requests for comment.
Longtime Biden adviser Steve Ricchetti, who serves in the White House as counselor to the president, was among those approached about a pardon for Menendez, two people familiar with the discussions said. Ricchetti was noncommittal, they said, but the takeaway for Menendez was that Biden would be unlikely to do it.
Ricchetti declined to comment.
The former senator later tried to gain traction on a pardon from Biden through third-party outreach to other people close to the president, two people familiar with the discussions said.
Menendez also has used emissaries in discussions with the Trump transition team, including Jewish leaders in New Jersey, two people familiar with the discussions said. Menendez was a fierce advocate for Israel during his time in public office and has leveraged his strong ties to the Garden State’s Jewish communities.
As part of his efforts to gain clemency from Trump, Menendez has looked at Trump’s 2020 decision to commute the sentence of former Illinois Democratic Gov. Rod Blagojevich.
Blagojevich was convicted of corruption charges related to his solicitation of bribes to influence his decision on who would fill Barack Obama’s U.S. Senate seat after he was elected president. He was sentenced to 14 years in prison in 2011.
A jury found Menendez guilty in July on charges that he accepted bribes — including cash and gold bars — to benefit the governments of Egypt and Qatar, as well as extortion, conspiracy, obstruction of justice and acting as a foreign agent.
Menendez’s wife, Nadine Menendez, was also charged and pleaded not guilty. She will be tried separately. After the jury verdict, Damian Williams, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, whose office prosecuted the case, said that “years of selling his office to the higher bidder have finally come to an end.”
Trump and his allies have repeatedly claimed he was prosecuted by a weaponized Department of Justice, which two Menendez allies said the former senator could also use to curry favor with the president-elect and argue he was too prosecuted by a corrupt DOJ. They said it could also be used as a justification for Trump if he were to pardon Menendez.
