This is a key moment in Broadway musicals, when the heroine declares she’s going to stay and fight. Well, Senator Bob Menendez is the main character in his own mind, and he’s not going anywhere, he announced during a press conference today.

We have covered the details of the indictment earlier, and covered Menendez’s initial defense against those who are calling on him to resign – “I am Latino, how dare you.” Hilariously, one Democrat who ignored the race card and went straight on to calling for Menendez’s resignation was none other than Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez herself. Of course, AOC had to acknowledge “systemic bias” against Latinos, but then she promptly lit Menendez’s race card on fire.

BREAKING: @AOC calls on Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ) to resign following his indictment on federal bribery charges, "to maintain the integrity of the seat.”

“It shouldn't matter whether it's a Republican or a Democrat. The details in this indictment are extremely serious.” pic.twitter.com/QAe2H0qmJi

— Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) September 24, 2023

“I think the situation is quite unfortunate, but I do believe that it is in the best interest for Sen. Menendez to resign in this moment,” Ocasio-Cortez told “Face the Nation” moderator Margaret Brennan on Sunday. “Consistency matters. It shouldn’t matter if it’s a Republican or a Democrat. The details in this indictment are extremely serious. They involve the nature of not just his but all of our seats in Congress.”

A wave of Democratic lawmakers and New Jersey officials, including Gov. Phil Murphy, soon began calling for Menendez to step aside as the legal process unfolds. Menendez rejected those calls out of hand, saying he is “not going anywhere.” He added that it was “not lost on me how quickly some are rushing to judge a Latino and push him out of his seat.”

Asked about those comments on Sunday, Ocasio-Cortez said the details in the indictment were damning enough to warrant his resignation.

“As a Latina, there are absolutely ways in which there is systemic bias, but I think what is here in this indictment is quite clear. And I believe it is in the best interest to maintain the integrity of the seat. I want to emphasize that all people, they must be extended the presumption of innocence until proven guilty. That is the legal reality in our country,” she told “Face the Nation.” “But when it comes to the political and the standard of dignity that we want to maintain for the public in the United States Congress, I do believe it is in the best interest.”

It’s becoming increasingly obvious that the Democrats want Menendez out of the Senate, but they want him to feel enough shame to do it himself by resigning. They’ve forgotten that Bob Menendez, having already escaped conviction for corruption once before and learned that he could get away with it, has no relationship with the concept of “shame.” So he gave a public press conference today that was the political equivalent of singing “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going.”

Menedez detailed his decades-long record in Congress and insisted hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash the FBI found at his home was withdrawn from his personal savings account.

“The allegations leveled against me are just that, allegations,” Menendez said. “For anyone who has known me throughout my 50 years of public service, they know I have always fought for what is right. My advocacy has always been grounded. And what I learned from growing up as the son of Cuban refugees, especially my mom, my hero, Evangelina Menendez. Everything I accomplished, I worked for despite the nay sayers and everyone who has underestimated me.”

“I firmly believe that when all the facts are presented, not only will I be exonerated, but I still will be New Jersey’s senior senator,” he added, falling short of formally announcing re-election.

Menendez insisted in the press conference on four things. First, he demands to be presumed innocent (even alluding to his previous corruption charge as “sometimes a prosecutor gets it wrong”). Second, he says that he was holding Egypt “accountable” and detailed his political record regarding Egypt (apparently, championing “human rights” in Egypt means that he should not be questioned regarding anything he did regarding Egypt). Third, he admitted to keeping large quantities of cash in his home and says it all came from his personal savings account, because he claims this is what any self-respecting person of Cuban descent would do if you are worried about the bank seizing your money (no comment about the gold bars, though). And finally, he appealed to the people of New Jersey, because he loves them and has continually delivered for them and brought home the bacon from Congress, “and you, and you, and you, you’re gonna love meeeeeeeeeeeee.” And then to prove his point, he gave his statements again in Spanish. Once he was done, his handpicked room of supporters cheered and applauded.

In short, Menendez beat the rap once, he has every intention of trying to do it again, and he brought in a big name in order to make sure that happens.

New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendez has tapped Abbe Lowell, the same attorney defending Hunter Biden against his tax and firearm charges, to represent him in his federal bribery case, a spokesperson for the prosecutors said.

In addition to representing President Joe Biden’s son, Lowell has a storied track record with high-profile litigation, including Menendez’s past corruption charges.

The Democratic senator also hired Lowell when he was charged in 2015 for allegedly accepting illegal gifts from a Florida ophthalmologist. That case was eventually dropped due to a deadlocked jury.

Abbe Lowell is the biggest legal defense hired gun in political circles, and already got Menendez off once. It’s clear that Menendez expects the same thing to happen again, and he doesn’t care how many Democrats are cringing after that press conference. The man just claimed, with a straight face, that he suffers from cultural PTSD regarding banks because he’s Cuban, so OF COURSE he’s going to have cash hidden around his house!

Just an amazing defense for an American senator.

His argument is that he’s worried that the United States government will start confiscating cash just just like the totalitarian regime his family fled https://t.co/b1SyOtEYUw

— Chuck Ross (@ChuckRossDC) September 25, 2023

So there go the Democrats’ hopes that Bob Menendez could be shamed into resigning. It’s not going to happen, and he just gave them all a severe case of heartburn. And now the chaos of a full-throated Democrat primary race will descend onto New Jersey. Start stocking up on popcorn NOW, everyone. After all, with that kind of virtuoso performance during a press conference, any primary debate is going to be must-see-TV.

Featured image: Senator Bob Menendez, official Congressional portrait, cropped, public domain