Sen. Bob Menendez
A probe into Sen. Bob Menendez's relationship to a nonprofit agency has ended five years after it started. The Star-Ledger reports his lawyer got a letter clearing Menendez from the U.S. Attorney in Philadelphia. That's because Jersey's U.S. Attorney, Paul "What Corruption?" Fishman had to recuse himself. Again. Menendez was a sponsor of Fishman's U.S. Attorney ambitions. At the time, Menendez said the guy coming in behind Chris Christie should concentrate on gangs. Fishman said he didn't think New Jersey was the most corrupt state in the nation and to refer to it like that hurts our feelings. (Really, I'm not making this up.) Fishman in private practice was attorney for Carla Katz, union official and Jon Corzine's gal pal, and for the company Encap Golf Holdings, both of which were investigated by Christie’s office. Later, the U.S. Attorney in New York had to take over the Encap probe after Fishman recused himself from that one.
Paul Fishman
The Menendez investigation in 2006 was into a rental deal between Menendez and a nonprofit organization. Landlord Menendez collected more than $300,000 in rent from the nonprofit and, while a member of the U.S. House of Representatives, helped the agency paying the rent get federal grants. Employees of the nonprofit, the North Hudson Community Action Corporation, contributed $33,450 to Menendez campaigns. Menendez is on the ballot in November, 2012.