Democratic Maryland Senator Ben Cardin will take over as chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee after New Jersey Senator Bob Menendez stepped aside when he was indicted on federal corruption charges for a second time, the Baltimore Sun reports.
Cardin, who is not seeking reelection in 2024 when his term expires, is on familiar ground: when Menendez was indicted in 2015 for similar charges–the trial for which ended in a hung jury–Cardin stepped in to chair the same committee as the New Jersey Democrat stepped aside to adhere to Democratic caucus rules.