Matthew Whitaker to Newsmax: We Must 'Root Out' Govt Corruption

There are disconcerting similarities between the bribery allegations against Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., and President Joe Biden, according to former acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker on Newsmax.

"There are a lot of similarities," Whitaker told "Saturday Report." "We're dealing with the same course of conduct, which is essentially money or benefits paid to either a person or their family and have that quid pro quo before official action. And you know the allegations in the bribery impeachment inquiry are obviously that we believe — and many believe — that Joe Biden received things of value, or members of his family received things of value, to have the Burisma prosecutor fired and tied that to American loan guarantees."

The corruption among senators and government officials with foreign interests must be rooted out, Whitaker add to host Rita Cosby.

"There are a lot of parallels here," he continued. "We need to root this out, because, at the end of the day, we cannot have a corrupt government. We can't have individuals serving in that government that are being bribed by our foreign adversaries and foreign people that don't have our national interests at heart."

This is not the first time Menendez has faced allegations, and Whitaker suspected the inability to find guilt the first time around might have emboldened the Democrat senator.

"It's very serious: What we're dealing with here is a senator that had been charged in 2017, had jury that couldn't decide on his guilt, and it appears that he was emboldened by victory, however small it might have been for him at the time," Whitaker said.

"And so you know, this charge obviously is the gravest. It is a, you know, using his position as a senator and chairman to help people in exchange for money and what appears to be gold bars.

"I mean, this is about as corrupt of an allegation as you can get at the Department of Justice."

Menendez held a prominent role as a Democrat in the Senate, even after the past allegations against him, Whitaker said.

"As chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, not only can he direct foreign aid and approve it and make sure that it gets to places like Ukraine, but also he can help and shape us policy toward you know the Middle East, toward China, and so many other places," Whitaker continued.

"I can only tell you what's in the four corners of the indictment, but I have a feeling that this isn't necessarily the end of this story. If he's willing to take money from Egyptian business leaders, who else was trying to bribe him? Who else is trying to approach him for official action?

"The people of New Jersey deserve a senator that works on their behalf and not in their own personal interests," Whitaker said. "And I think that's the bigger question here is: Are the people of New Jersey ... going to finally be fed up with his actions and allegations of corruption?

"Because, you know, he's up for reelection in 2024, and this is going to be the perfect time for them to change out and put a senator in there that works on their behalf."

Like Menendez, the House impeachment inquiry must fully vet the allegations against Biden, his Justice Department, and Hunter Biden special counsel David Weiss, according to Whitaker.

"There's no doubt that U.S. Attorney Weiss, who's now special counsel, has not been completely honest," Whitaker said. "Merrick Garland in his testimony this last week was not completely honest with the American people and is trying to, you know, play word games with whether or not Weiss had the authority to bring these cases.

"But you know, this impeachment inquiry is going to be important. And they're going have to do the hard investigative work, including subpoenaing banks and other records to try to build this paper trail."

Thankfully, the House GOP has the "investigative curiosity" that is lacking elsewhere in the Biden administration, according to Whitaker.

"In the Menendez case, obviously they did a thorough job. They traced the money; they found it in a closet; they found gold bars; they had used all the resources and tools available to them to investigate this case," Whitaker said. "But in this Burisma situation and in the Hunter and Joe Biden and Biden family relationships with Ukrainian oligarchs and others, they just didn't have the investigative curiosity to chase this down.

"And now it's up to the House to have that curiosity to follow the money wherever it may lead, and ultimately, it looks like it's going to end up in the pockets of Joe Biden and his family."

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