John Fetterman moves to ban 'Gold Bar' Bob Menendez from classified briefings as he awaits trial for acting as a foreign agent for Egypt

Sen. John Fetterman stepped up his campaign against Bob Menendez with a resolution that would bar his fellow Democratic senator from classified briefings while he awaits trial on bribery charges.

Menendez stands accused of using his role as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee to benefit Egypt in return for hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Fetterman introduced a resolution on Thursday that would disqualify Menendez from classified hearings.

‘When you find gold bars stuffed in a mattress, the jokes write themselves. But our national security isn’t funny, it’s often life or death,’ Fetterman said. 

Menendez, 69, one of the most powerful senators in the country, last month pleaded not guilty to a string of charges. 

Sen. John Fetterman (left) stepped up his campaign against Bob Menendez with a resolution that would bar his fellow Democratic senator from classified briefings

Fetterman introduced a resolution on Thursday that would disqualify Menendez from classified hearings while he awaits trial on bribery charges

Investigators said they found nearly $500,000 in cash, much of it hidden in clothing and closets, at his New Jersey home.

They also recovered gold bars worth more than $100,000.

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In the meantime, Menendez has stepped down as head of the foreign relations committee — in line with Democratic caucus rules — but continues to attend classified briefings.

He triggered outrage and questions at the White House about how he was allowed to sit in on a classified session on Ukraine Wednesday.

‘Bottom line is, I’m a United States senator,’ he told CNN. ‘I have my security credentials. And an accusation is just that: It’s not proof of anything.

Fetterman is intent on changing the rules. His resolution would not only stop senators charged with certain offenses from receiving classified information, it would remove them from committees.

‘The Senate has an obligation to its constituents and this country to do everything it can to protect national security, and that means making sure that senators who are currently indicted for acting as agents of foreign powers don’t have access to our most sensitive national secrets,’ Fetterman said. 

‘If an indicted senator doesn’t have the guts or basic decency to step down, the Senate must act to protect national security and the institution itself.’ 

Authorities said they found more than $100,000 worth of gold bars at the Menendez home. In March 2022, Nadine met with a jeweler to sell some gold bars she falsely claimed to have gotten from her mother

His was one of the loudest voices calling for Menendez to be expelled after he was charged.

‘We cannot have an alleged foreign agent in the United States Senate,’ he said last month. ‘This is not a close call.’ 

The indictment against Menendez, as a public official, was prohibited from serving as a foreign agent. 

He is charged along with his wife Nadine and three businessmen.