Bob Menendez grew up the son of immigrants in a tenement building in Union City. A product of New Jersey's public schools and a graduate of the state's universities, he has served as a school board member, a mayor and a state legislator. Since 1992, he has been fighting for New Jersey families in Washington, where he rose to become the third-highest ranking Democrat in the House of Representatives before taking office in the Senate in 2006.

Bob first entered public service as a 19-year old college student when he launched a successful petition drive to reform his local school board. He learned then the importance of standing up for what's right, no matter how powerful the opposition.

That same commitment led Bob to stand up to the powerful mayor of Union City when he saw him abusing his office for personal gain. He took on the mayor and testified against him in court, even though it meant wearing a bulletproof vest after receiving threats to his life. Bob stood up to the entire political establishment in his hometown, and led a coalition of reformers that cleaned up the city.

In Congress, he has fought to make health care more affordable for New Jersey's families and to improve schools so they prepare our children for a successful future. Now he is fighting to make college more affordable for the next generation of leaders.

Bob believes we should honor our parents by making sure they can retire with dignity and has introduced legislation to make it easier for families to care for their aging loved ones. And he has led the fight to stop the privatization of Social Security.

After September 11, 2001, Bob earned national recognition for his leadership in reforming the country's intelligence and public health systems and for fighting to establish an independent commission to investigate the terrorist attacks on our country. Today, he is working to improve the security of our bus, rail and public transit systems.

Elected by his colleagues in 2002 as the Chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, Bob Menendez became the highest-ranking Hispanic in Congressional history. He previously served as the Vice Chairman of the Democratic Caucus and has led key Task Forces on Education and Homeland Security.

After being appointed by New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine, Bob was sworn in to the Senate on January 18, 2006. In November of that year, New Jerseyans elected Bob to serve a full six-year term as United States Senator. He currently serves on the Senate Committees on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs; Energy and Natural Resources; Budget; and Foreign Relations. Bob is also the Chairman of the Subcommittee on International Development and Foreign Assistance, Economic Affairs, and International Environmental Protection.

Bob was born in New York City on January 1, 1954. He received his B.A. from St. Peter's College in Jersey City and his law degree from Rutgers University. He currently lives in Hoboken and has two children, Alicia and Robert.

Blog Entries by Sen. Robert Menendez

The Politics of Fabrication and Fear

21 Comments | Posted August 14, 2009 | 10:45 AM (EST)


The politics of fabrication and fear is back. In the tradition of Karl Rove, the architects of our recession are at it again, pushing a fear-stoking message based on falsehoods. They are delighting as the fear turns into public anger, and the cable news networks can't get enough.

Some have...

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Realizing the Ideal: America Fulfills its Promise

17 Comments | Posted August 6, 2009 | 07:01 PM (EST)


The Senate, in confirming Judge Sonia Sotomayor, has made history and stood witness to the coming of age of America.

Our founders built a nation on an idea and an ideal.

They devised a unique experiment in a new form of government built on tolerance, equal rights, justice, and...

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Introducing the Concept of Choice Into Our Health Care System

320 Comments | Posted June 25, 2009 | 02:32 PM (EST)


Public plan option. Three words in the health care reform process about which much has been said -- a lot of it meant to stoke fears. Amidst all of the mischaracterizations being thrown around, let's focus on the most important of those three words: Option.

As in choice.

...
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Other Types of Bonuses Deserve an Examination

Posted March 16, 2009 | 11:31 AM (EST)


The well-justified furor over executive bonuses at banks that receive taxpayer money, which has been reignited over the weekend by the reports of AIG bonuses, is rooted in two entirely valid issues. One is the very appropriate concern over the wisdom of these payouts from a business perspective -- Americans...

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The Importance of Focusing on Credit Card Debt

Posted February 25, 2009 | 07:59 PM (EST)


A quick post of appreciation for Arianna Huffington helping to put the issue of out-of-control credit card debt in the spotlight. The nuts and bolts of why it is such a big threat to so many families and the already-battered economy are fully explained by Arianna (or in

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The Gathering Credit Card Storm

Posted November 18, 2008 | 12:01 PM (EST)


Our current financial crisis is a case study in ripple effects. A lot of bad mortgage loans, bad loans between organizations, bad evaluations by ratings agencies and bad oversight by government collectively toppled big Wall Street firms. This caused our credit markets to freeze, leading to business contraction, massive job...

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Bush and McCain: Drilling us into a Deeper Hole

Posted June 18, 2008 | 01:52 PM (EST)


It's hard to imagine that John McCain was too happy today when President Bush echoed his call for drilling up and down our nation's coastlines. He was having a hard enough time trying pass the laugh test when claiming that his plan would have any effect on gas prices anytime...

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Effort to Save Bear Stearns Must be Matched by Effort to Save Homeowners

Posted April 2, 2008 | 11:56 AM (EST)


"Who are you working for?" It's a simple question that carries a lot of meaning depending on who's asking and when. It's the question millions of Americans - struggling with enormous mortgage payments, gas nearing $4 a gallon and unappetizing higher prices at the grocery store -- must have wanted...

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Latinos Step Up

Posted November 15, 2007 | 06:35 PM (EST)


It's hard to predict much about November 2008 from the vantage point of November 2007. But one thing is going to be a demographic certainty: the road to the White House passes through the Latino community.

The importance of the Latino vote in next year's elections is getting...

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No Time to Lose Focus of the True Meaning of the Iraq Debate

Posted September 25, 2007 | 07:32 PM (EST)


Last week on Capitol Hill was particularly unsettling. As another 15 sons and daughters of America died in the crossfire in Iraq, as 130,000 American troops over there still saw no light at the end of the tunnel, as Osama bin Laden continued to control his own safe zone, and...

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