Menendez Donor Melgen Financed Clintons, Wasserman Schultz, GOP Pols

Federal Election Commission records show that Dr. Salomon Melgen, the Miami ophthalmologist connected to New Jersey Democratic Sen. Bob Menendez’s alleged prostitution scandal, has financed several high-ranking politicians from both political parties.

Over the years, Melgen and his wife Flor donated $2,000 to former President Bill Clinton and another $4,700 to outgoing Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s various campaigns. Melgen donated $3,000 to Hugh Rodham, Hillary’s brother, for his unsuccessful 1994 Senate campaign, and $1,000 to Al Gore’s failed 2000 bid for president.

Melgen and his wife together donated $9,600 to former Florida Democratic Rep. Kendrick Meek’s failed 2010 run for U.S. Senate. Bill Clinton infamously supported Meek in that race, a three-way campaign between then-Gov. Charlie Crist and the race’s ultimate winner, Marco Rubio. Meek was widely expected to lose that race, but Clinton supported him anyway.

The Melgens have donated $8,000 total to Minnesota Democratic Sen. Amy Klobuchar in recent cycles, $2,000 to New York Democratic Sen. Chuck Schumer in 1998, and $9,600 to Democratic National Committee chairwoman and Florida Democratic Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz.

Melgen has supported Republicans, too. He and his wife donated $10,000 to Florida Republican Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart over the years and $9,800 to his fellow Florida Republican, Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen. 

Ros-Lehtinen was the House Foreign Affairs Committee chairwoman last Congress–she was replaced this Congress by California Republican Rep. Ed Royce–and would have, if she stayed in the spot, technically been Menendez’s House counterpart. With Massachusetts Democratic Sen. John Kerry being confirmed as the next U.S. Secretary of State, Menendez took over as the Senate Foreign Relations Committee chairman.

Interestingly, Melgen also donated $250 to former Florida Republican Rep. Mark Foley. Foley resigned in September 2006 after allegations surfaced that he had sent sexually suggestive emails and instant messages to underage male congressional pages.

All of the above politicians either didn’t respond to a Breitbart News request for comment Wednesday evening, or were unreachable by publication time.