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Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas) on Dec. 7 defended the move to run as a Democrat in his reelection bid after being granted a pardon by President Donald Trump.
Trump said on Dec. 7 that he granted pardons to Cuellar and his wife, Imelda, despite having never spoken to the congressman before, because he believed they were targeted by the Biden administration due to Cuellar’s stance on border security.
The couple were charged with bribery in May last year. Trump said Cuellar moved to run for reelection as a Democrat shortly after he signed the pardons.
He criticized the congressman for continuing to work with the “same radical left” people who “just weeks before wanted him and his wife to spend the rest of their lives in Prison – And probably still do.”
“Such a lack of LOYALTY, something that Texas Voters, and Henry’s daughters, will not like. Oh’ well, next time, no more Mr. Nice guy,” the president said on Truth Social.
Cuellar addressed the post in a Fox News interview, saying he has prayed for Trump and his family, and expressed his readiness to work with the president while maintaining his ties with the Democratic Party.
“And again, as probably the most bipartisan individual, I don’t vote party, I vote for what’s right for the country,” he told the news host. “I am a conservative Democrat, but I will work with the president. I’ve reached out to his administration.”
Cuellar and his wife were charged in May 2024 for allegedly participating in two schemes involving bribery, unlawful foreign influence, and money laundering. The pair faced up to 20 years behind bars had they been convicted.
Prosecutors alleged that Cuellar and his wife received about $600,000 in bribes from “an oil and gas company wholly owned and controlled by the government of Azerbaijan” and a Mexico City-based bank between December 2014 and November 2021.
The payments were allegedly laundered “through a series of front companies and middlemen into shell companies owned by Imelda Cuellar, who performed little to no legitimate work under the contracts,” according to a Department of Justice statement issued last year.
Announcing his pardons on Dec. 3, Trump alleged that the Biden administration had “weaponized the justice system” against its critics, including Cuellar, whom he said “bravely spoke out against open borders.”
Cuellar thanked Trump for “taking the time to look at the facts” and praised his leadership. The congressman later said in another post that he intends to work in “a bipartisan manner” after launching his reelection bid as a Democrat in Texas.
