For him. I think that is funny that is all anyone asked about. To talk about in the questions. Ton don riddell. Thank you so much. The lead with jake tapper starts right now. Senator bob menendez said there is a good reason he had nearly half a Million Dollars in cash stuffed in envelopes in jackets at his home. The lead starts right now. A defiant defense, senator bob menendez denying federal charges against him. How he justified all of that money stuffed in envelopes in jackets and close ties to the egyptian officials. But how about those gold bars and a mercedesbenz. Plus less than a week until the Government Shutdown. What Kevin Mccarthy just told cnn about his cut with democrats and those threatening to oust him if he does. And donald trump playing to his maga base at a gun store in south carolina. Welcome to the lead, im era hill in for jake tapper. We begin with our law and justice league. A defiant senator bob menendez pushing back on calls for him to resign. For those that Rush To Judgment you have done so based on a limited set of facts framed by the prosecution to be a salacious as possible. Instead of waiting for all of the fakes to be presented, others have rushed to judgment because they see a political opportunity for themselves or those around them. The new jersey democrat speaking publicly for the First Time Since he, his wife and three others were indicted last friday on bribery charges. Menendez accused of accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash, gold bars and Home Mortgage payments and a mercedes in exchange for his influence as a u. S. Senator. He used the power to benefit himself and others an the egyptian government. It is the second time in ten years the senator has been charged with corruption related offenses. Today the senate tried to explain why he had so much cash, more than 480,000 stuffed into jackets and envelopes and also spoke about his connections to officials in egypt. Cnns lauren fox starts our coverage with more on what Senator Menendez is calling his biggest fight yet. A defiant bob menendez vowing night to resign as he faced down federal corruption charges. I firmly believe that i will be exonerated and still the new jersey senior senator. Reporter Menendez Facing Pressure to step aside. Fellow democratic senator John Fetterman tweeting, quote, hes entitled to the Presumption Of Innocence but he cannot continue to wield influence over national policy. The situation is quite unfortunate. But i do believe it is in the best interest for Senator Menendez to resign in this moment. They are called that menendez said are premature as he offers new explanations rebutting the allegations. Any new jersey voters watching right now who may have concerns that again your facing scrutiny over corruption, what is your response to them . The response to that is simply that, number one, this inquiry will end up, i believe, in absolutely nothing. Reporter in an Indictment Foreman Prosecutors allege he received hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes in the form of cash and gold and a Luxury Vehicle in exchange for the senators influence. Prosecutors say some of that evidence included dna. And fingerprints of one of the business Contacts Menendez allegedly accepted bribes from. For 30 years, i have withdrawn thousands of dollars in cash from my personal saving account which i have kept for emergencies and because of the history of my family Facing Confiscation in cuba. Now this may seem oldfashioned. But these were monies drawn from my personal savings account based on the income that i have lawfully derived over those 30 years. Reporter menendez now faces a democratic Primary Challenge from representative andy kim. One of six members of the new jersey congressional delegation calling on him to resign. There are a lot of concerns about his integrity and i think it is important that we do everything that we can to restore faith in the American People in their government and sos why im stepping up to run against him. Dick durbin stopped short of calling for resignation. This is a very serious charge. There is no question about it. In terms of resignation, that is a decision that will be made by Senator Menendez and the people of new jersey. Reporter Senator Menendez is due there court on wednesday. When he returns to capitol hill, however, hell no longer wield the gavel of the Senate Foreign relations committee. Hes going to be temporarily stepping aside under senate rules. The committee will now be run by the top democrat ben carden who will fill in while menendez moves forward with these court proceedings. Erica. Lauren fox, appreciate it. Thank you. Lets discuss now. So as we look at what has been laid out in this indictment, what we heard today, there is a lot of evidence in there. The cash and the luxury car and allegations not limited to the senate ors actions but he addressed only the cash today. If you were his attorney, how are you feeling about the comments today in terms of what was and what was not addressed . Well, frankly, if i was representing him, i would prefer him say nothing at all. One of the challenges of representing someone in his circumstances is that hes going to feel the need to be out there defending himself but every word he says ultimately boxes him in, locks him into a defense. Ultimately he cant take the stand and Say Something different or else hes going to be impeached with the statements he just made. Realistically, this is a challenging set of facts for the senator to explain away. I mean, you also mentioned you didnt talk about the gold bars. He didnt talk about the google searches that he made about what to do with the gold bars. But i think the bigger fault line is a trial is really him trying to distance himself from official actions taken on behalf of the egyptian government. I actually think, i mean, the money and the gold bars are kind of priced in. In other words the jury will take that and not like it and hell have to have some explanation but try to convince the jury that he doesnt he wasnt trying to help the egyptian government. I think it will be hard. I think it is an uphill battle and i think he should be considering a guilty plea. Well, when asked about menendez today, White House Press secretary Karine Jeanpierre called This A Serious Matter and didnt comment further. How does this complicate things for the white house and also for the president in terms of his reelection bid . Im not sure that it complicates things for his reelection bid youre seeing the stark difference between the way republicans have responded to a criminal charges against donald trump, and the way youre seeing democrats respond here which is to say, you know, some to call on his resignation, some to say that the process should play out and the senator iss entitled to full treatment from the Justice System. This is putting on display the difference between republicans who are quick to cry weaponization of the Justice System and to deny that anything donald trump has done is anything but perfect. And democrats who when faced with serious allegations like this, take it seriously and say so. So i dont think there is a complication for the president s reelect here. Remember Senator Menendez is not a national name. He holds an important position in the senate. But hes not a House Hold Name across country. This is not the kind of thing that will be all consuming from a narrative and Communications Perspective. Scott, when we look at this, this idea that many republicans have and sounding this weaponization of the justice department. Do the new charges undermine, undercut that argument . Great question. I dont know. I mean, i guess. Maybe. I also think kate is putting as happy a face as possible on whether this complicates things for democrats. I mean joe biden and Chuck Schumer and dick durbin, not a single one have called for menendez to step down and theyve been handed out and while theyre out banging on donald trump for his legal entanglements, they are worried about being too critical of menendez. You have a couple calling him to resign and that is about it and what hes hearing from his Party Leadership in my opinion is support. Menendez has lived experiences, you could get accused of a corruption and get a hung jury and live in a post Shame Society and so i dont expect them to do Anything Else except plow it straight ahead and see if he could beat it again. The idea that we would sk compare the crimes from donald trump over the last two or three years which weve seen on full display to these allegations which are serious and democrats have said their serious. The idea as we would compare those two things in terms of public evidence weve seen to date. That is that didnt quite pass the smell test. But i think youre seeing the difference between the way republicans react, which is in a very protect the team way and willing to go to bat for any transgression that trump has committed versus the way democrats are reacting to say let the Justice System do their job. In the state of new jersey, that is not what youre hearing. From the governor and across multiple important positions of leadership and and lawmakers that were seeing there. Theyre saying that menendez should resign. Do you agree . Should he be considering that at this moment . That is a decision for him. I think if you take a step back and look at the politics, do i think he should consider resignation . I do. Does he want to spend the next year plus talking about nothing about this within his own race in the state of new jersey. Im not sure if i would advise him that is something that he could do. And now Sherrod Brown now call for thatm. And again, these are allegations but these pictures what we see in the indictment, do you foresee more damning details when it comes to discovery . I do. I mean, i dont think the prosecutors were pulling any punches. But that said, there is a lot here. And it sure really looks very difficult for Senator Menendez to overcome. I do appreciate what hes saying. That you are only hearing in the governments perspective and it is possible to defeat the government, he discovered that the first time. Ive done it in private practice as well but i dont see lightning striking twice here for Senator Menendez. Thank you. Taking a look now at the other side of capitol hill and the very latest comments from speaker Kevin Mccarthy. What he just said about threats from his own gop colleagues to force him out of office if he cuts a deal with democrats. A deal they dont like. Plus how donald trump explains his decision to go to michigan one day before he planned to go. Back now with our Politics Lead and our other big story on capitol hill. The looming Government Shutdown. With fewer than six days for lawmakers to fund the government, there is no clear plan. Hardline republicans are unwilling to work with democrats to pass a shortterm Spending Bill as they dangle a mutiny over mccarthys head. And manu raju is at the capitol. Even matt gaetz seems to be dead on arrival in the senate. So where do we stand. Reporter Speaker Mccarthy is caught between trying to keep the government open and his job and it is unclear on how it will play out. He trying to pass a republican bill to keep the government open. But he doesnt have the votes. A number of hardliners said they will not be there and he could only afford to lose four votes at most if he decides to go along party lines in there. And then there is the warning that if he does cut a deal with democrats, that could be enough to push him out of the speakership. A number of republicans on the far right have made that very clear to me and have made that clear publicly. They will not accept that. So i had a chance to ask Speaker Mccarthy this question just moments ago, whether or not he is not cutting a deal with democrats, because hes worried if he did that, it would push him out of the speakership . How much is the fact that if you do cut a deal with democrats, there could be a vote to push you out, how much of that would drive your Decision Making right now. Nothing drives my decision. If that is driving many i decision, would that have driven my Decision Making 15 times before. But you could have cut a deal with democrats and that could be the end of it. Did i cut a deal then . When if. When i wasnt 15 rounds. No im talking about right now. But let me explain something to you. Im no different than i was then or before. My whole focus, what is in my mind, what drives me, is the American People. Im not worried if someone makes a motion or somebody votes no. As the House Republicans are struggling to move forward, Senate Leaders are in talks to try to move their own plan. But even if a bill passed by bipartisan support in the senate, there is no guarantee if will get the votes in the house to move ahead. Mccarthy will not commit to that. So just major questions looming over washington this week. Also looming over washington, the former president who is weighing in. He has a pitch. Are lawmakers listening . Hes saying to shut to down. He said that in his social media post. Unless you get everything, shut it down. He said that on social media. Something that has just not helpful for Kevin Mccarthy at this point. And mccarthy said if you shut it down, it will backfire on republicans politically. But those members that listen to donald trump, especially many of them in that faction, that refuses to bend in these spending talks, are going to listen to trump and not mccarthy which is only going to complicate his calculation as mccarthy tries to round up the gop votes but at the moment doesnt have them. Erica. Manu raju at the capitol. Thank you. Joining me now, colorado republican congressman ken buck. So good to have you with us this afternoon. Picking up where manu left off, how much weight does the former president holdover your colleagues at this moment . I dont think he holds any sway. I think keb mccarthy has a problem because he made one promise when he was getting elected speaker that he would hold spending to a 1. 47 trillion number and then he went during a debt ceiling and negotiated with the president a 1. 65 trillion number. And now he is talking to republicans about a 1. 52 trillion number. Which democrats have said they wont accept because it is less than the debt ceiling deal. So, you now have three numbers that are floating around the capitol and it is up to Kevin Mccarthy to figure out how hes going to get 218 votes to pass something. But the people who are upset and want the lower number are the people who voted for him ultimately after the 15th ballot or during the 15th ballot for his speakers race and that is number that a lot of us are expecting that well see for a continuing resolution and the upcoming budget. So you said to my colleague abby phillip just before the weekend that you didnt believe the government would shut down. But also pointed out to her that you were staying in washington over the weekend to work. You say this is on Speaker Mccarthy to get it figured out. But you were trying to work on it as well. So was there any movement over the weekend . I think there were a lot of good discussions. I think we have four Appropriations Bills that will come to the floor. I will vote for the rule. And i did the last time on the on the department of defense Appropriations Bill. So i think that pass passing four Appropriations Bills early this week would be a very good step towards finding some Common Ground on a continuing resolution. I could tell you that no republican and no democrat wants to see Government Shutdown. We have to work harder and make sure we get the number right and pass it. So you say you will vote yes on this Appropriations Bill and youre confident there are enough colleagues that will follow that . I will vote yes on the procedural rule that puts the four Appropriations Bills on the floor. Im not sure i will vote yes on all four. I havent seen all four yet. But i will certainly vote yes on some of those Appropriations Bills. When we look at what could happen here, historically letting the Government Shutdown is not seen as a winning strategy. It doesnt help to win elections and just to refresh folks memory for people at home and who it could mean, active Military Members could go without pay and tsa workers and