— New Jersey Sen. Robert Menendez remained defiant in the face of federal bribery charges on Thursday, telling a room full of his Senate Democratic colleagues that he has no plans to resign.

Speaking behind closed doors at the Capitol, Menendez echoed his previous public statements in response to last week’s indictment, according to a person who attended the private luncheon and requested anonymity to discuss it. Menendez has repeatedly denied wrongdoing and pledged that he will beat the charges that he worked to secretly advance Egyptian interests and pressured prosecutors to help his friends.

More than half of Democratic senators have said Menendez should step down. But none of them asked questions after he spoke and vowed to remain in office, according to several senators leaving the meeting.

But Menendez’s remarks also appeared to win him no new allies, further isolating the New Jersey senator as his colleagues and Democratic leaders have wrestled over how to respond to the indictment alleging that he traded off his Senate position to enrich himself with cash, gold bars and a luxury car.

“My mind is not changed,” said Sen. Michael Bennet, D-Colo., who has called on Menendez to step down. He declined to give any additional details about the meeting.

“I don’t think there’s anything happy about his situation,” said Rhode Island Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse.

“He was pretty clear” that he’s not resigning, said Maryland Sen. Ben Cardin, who is taking over for Menendez as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Menendez was forced to step down after he was indicted due to caucus rules.

Menendez, who pleaded not guilty to the charges on Wednesday, did not tell his colleagues whether he will run for re-election next year. At least one Democrat, New Jersey Rep. Andy Kim, has already jumped into the primary, and the head of Senate Democrats’ campaign arm, Michigan Sen. Gary Peters, has called on Menendez to resign — signaling that he may not receive campaign assistance traditionally available to incumbents.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has not called on Menendez to resign.