Bob Menendez, Cuba's self-proclaimed "liberator," loves his gold bars

By Roberto Morejón

Like a common usurer, Democratic Senator Robert Menendez hid his ill-gotten money in clothes, envelopes, trunks and safes, in addition to hiding gold bars in closets, but a New York jury proved that part of his fortune was obtained through corruption.

The lawmaker of alleged Cuban descent, though he never set foot in the country, was found guilty of no less than 16 counts of bribery and corruption in a New York court.

As he awaits a sentence that could mean decades in prison, Menendez still insists on what he calls his innocence.

He embarrassingly denies that the many gifts and dollars in his home were gifts received in exchange for favors from businessmen and foreign governments.

The accused, who entered the Senate in 2006, cheerfully said that the goods in his possession are received as something natural in the activity of a politician, thus reflecting his peculiar philosophy as a public servant.

The man who became chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee used his influence to prevent any rapprochement between the United States and the largest of the Antilles or the easing of the blockade.

Together with other congressmen of alleged Cuban origin, he opposed Barack Obama's plans for talks with Havana.

In light of the verdict against him, calls for Menendez's resignation from the Senate increased, and the Democrats already have his replacement, Congressman Andy Kim.

An opponent of the pact with Iran, Nicaragua and Venezuela, and a fierce defender of Israel despite its policy of annihilating the Palestinians, the now indicted politician refused to let the administration of Joseph Biden follow in Obama's footsteps with regard to Cuba.  

Although he managed to escape from a previous trial for corruption thanks to his friends, this time he was abandoned to his fate in the face of the accumulation of evidence against him and his wife.

The man who today proclaims his humble origins in order to gain sympathy, although he lives in a wealthy community on the Hudson River in New York, was considered "the most Republican of Democrats" because of his ultra-conservative positions, and the evidence shows how much he lied, since today he is accused of bribery, extortion, fraud, obstruction of justice and conspiracy, professional liars, as he was with regard to Cuba.