Resigning is passe. It’s been done. The new thing is not to resign. No matter what. Public episode of senility? Don’t resign. Near death? Don’t resign. Criminal conviction? Don’t resign. (It’s a bipartisan problem, just ask George Santos.) Gov. Northam got away with dressing up as a klansman and then not resigning. Andy Cuomo didn’t manage to stick it out though. Biden’s fate is still unknown, but here comes Sen. Bob Menendez.

Sen. Bob Menendez is refuting reports that he’s planning to resign after he was convicted on federal bribery charges.

“I can tell you that I have not resigned nor have I spoken to any so called allies … Seems to me that there is an effort to try to force me into a statement. Anyone who knows me knows that’s the worst way to achieve a goal with me,” Menendez told CBS New York’s Christine Sloan on Wednesday.

Why should Menendez resign? There’s certainly nothing he gains from resigning. And what little leverage he still has left comes from refusing to resign. Maybe someday he can get one of those pardons in exchange for resigning. In the past there might have been talk about the good of the party or the good of the country, but that’s deader than disco. The Dem presidential nominee clearly doesn’t care about either.

Why should Bob?

The governor has called on the Senate to vote to expel Menendez if he refuses to step down. A two-thirds vote would be needed for his expulsion.

What would the smart Republican play be in that scenario? Let a less qualified and less senior replacement in while humiliating Dems by having to force the resignation of a convicted senate member. Or refuse and let the Dems suffer having to lobby a convicted criminal for votes. Either way it won’t be pretty.