Donald Trump pardons Texas Democrat Henry Cuellar

[LetMyPeopleVote]

Source: Texas Tribune

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump pardoned Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Laredo, Wednesday morning, ending the congressman’s multi-year federal legal battle. Cuellar had faced a dozen charges of bribery, money laundering and conspiracy.

In Trump’s pardon, announced via Truth Social, the president said that the Democratic congressman had been punished by a weaponized Department of Justice under former president Joe Biden for speaking out against the administration’s border policy.

“Sleepy Joe went after the Congressman, and even the Congressman’s wonderful wife, Imelda, simply for speaking the TRUTH,” Trump wrote.



Read more: https://www.texastribune.org/2025/12/03/henry-cuellar-donald-trump-pardon-bribery/

[Turbineguy]

1. That must have been a difficult decision.

On the one hand, the guy's a crook, on the other hand, he's a Democrat.

[hamsterjill]

21. In my opinion as a lifelong Texan...

The fact that Henry is Democrat is debatable. It would not surprise me if he finally crosses the aisle officially because of this.

[Turbineguy]

22. And as a crooked republican, he would fit right in.

[walkingman]

2. That pretty much confirms Rep. Henry Cuellar's guilt.

Adds credence to the fact that corruption is not exclusive to just the GOP.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

3. Trump pardons Texas Democratic Rep. Cuellar in bribery and conspiracy case

Taking a bribe is not a crime in trump's world

BREAKING: Trump pardons Texas Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar and his wife in a bribery and conspiracy case brought by federal prosecutors.

— The Associated Press (@apnews.com) 2025-12-03T15:54:19Z

https://apnews.com/article/trump-pardon-cuellar-45a47bc329bec820cd19c087b20fca19

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump pardoned Texas Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar and his wife in a federal bribery and conspiracy case on Wednesday, citing what he called a “weaponized” justice system.

Trump, who has argued that his own legal troubles were a partisan witch hunt, said on social media that the congressman and his wife, Imelda Cuellar, were prosecuted because Henry Cuellar had been critical of President Joe Biden’s immigration policies.

Trump, a Republican, said in a social media post that Cuellar “bravely spoke out against Open Borders” and accused Biden, a Democrat, of going after the congressman and his wife “simply for speaking the TRUTH.”

Federal authorities had charged Cuellar, 69, and his wife with accepting thousands of dollars in exchange for the congressman advancing the interests of an Azerbaijan-controlled energy company and a bank in Mexico. Cuellar is accused of agreeing to influence legislation favorable to Azerbaijan and deliver a pro-Azerbaijan speech on the floor of the U.S. House.

Cuellar has said he and his wife are innocent.

[Prairie Gates]

4. There is no precedent for Trump's outrageous and corrupt use of the pardon power

That this is not a front page story every day is crazy.

Remember the media throwing an absolute shitfit over the pardon of Mark Rich (which was, to be fair, fucking horrible).

Trump is not only undermining the DOJ; he's undermining the very principle of trial by jury. No jury decision is safe when Trump's pardon pen is on the rampage.

[Vinca]

5. Wonder how much that cost Cuellar.

[bluestarone]

6. PROOF, we have got the worst monster ever in

Our Whitehouse!

[Wiz Imp]

7. Will this finally get the idiot voters in his District to kick him to the curb?

That district deserves a true Democrat, not a Republican posing as one.

[KPN]

8. Bribery, money laundering? Those are just business deals -- good business deals, the best business deals -- in the

mafia ... oops, I mean the Donald Trump family.

[FredGarvin]

9. Americans voted for this clown

Won the election by a large margin.

[PSPS]

14. Large?

[Polybius]

23. I'm assuming the poster means Electorally

Certainly not in Popular Votes.

[PSPS]

24. Ah, yes. The other infamous lock on minority rule.

Votes largely apportioned by land mass and not by number of voters.

[MayReasonRule]

10. Rat Bastard Pardons Rat Bastard

𝖳𝗎𝗇𝖾 𝗂𝗇 𝖺𝗀𝖺𝗂𝗇 𝗅𝖺𝗍𝖾𝗋 𝖺𝗍 5 𝖺𝗇𝖽 𝖺𝗍 10, 𝗇𝗈 𝖽𝗈𝗎𝖻𝗍 𝗍𝗁𝗈𝗌𝖾 𝗋𝖺𝗍 𝖻𝖺𝗌𝗍𝖺𝗋𝖽𝗌 𝗐𝗂𝗅𝗅 𝖽𝗈 𝗂𝗍 𝖺𝗀𝖺𝗂𝗇!

[Bayard]

11. Will a Democrat finally get a place in this administration?

[LetMyPeopleVote]

12. Trump wants to normalize politicians accepting bribes.

Link to tweet

[Martin68]

13. Going after the Latino vote? Good luck with that.

[LudwigPastorius]

15. Well, I guess now we know where all that money went that Cuellar socked away.

[speak easy]

16. Henry Cuellar, Mr. Anti-Abortion, fund raising for Republicans himself.

Yet there were Democrats who defended this ' individual' through thick and thin for years.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

17. Trump's Pay-to-Pardon Scheme

This week Trump pardoned a private equity fraudster, the drug-trafficking ex-president of Honduras, and a Congressman who allegedly took bribes.

Meanwhile, he's weaponizing government to go after his enemies.

An utter mockery of the rule of law. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NflcWXdV-B0

— Robert Reich (@rbreich.bsky.social) 2025-12-03T19:27:10.181535Z

[LetMyPeopleVote]

18. MadowBlog-Trump's pardon for Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar fits a pro-corruption pattern

Trump appears to have a soft spot for politicians accused or convicted of corruption charges, regardless of party.

Trump’s pardon for Henry Cuellar is part of a truly ridiculous pro-corruption pattern, spanning both of his terms.

The message to politicians convicted or accused of corruption couldn’t be clearer: You have a friend in the Oval Office. www.ms.now/rachel-maddo...

— Steve Benen (@stevebenen.com) 2025-12-03T18:12:42.085Z

https://www.ms.now/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/trump-pardon-henry-cuellar-corruption

It seemed like only a matter of time before the public would learn about a possible indictment against the Texas Democrat. In May 2024, as Republicans continued to insist that the Biden-era Justice Department was out to get GOP officials, that’s precisely what happened: Prosecutors brought corruption charges against the congressman.

A year and a half later, Donald Trump pardoned Cuellar. As my MS NOW colleague Erum Salam reported:

President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that he would pardon Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, and his wife, Imelda, who were indicted in 2024 on charges of bribery, unlawful foreign influence and money laundering. ‘Henry, I don’t know you, but you can sleep well tonight — Your nightmare is finally over!’ Trump wrote in his announcement of the pardon on Truth Social.

On the surface, these developments might appear counterintuitive, since the president is a Republican and the controversial congressman is a Democrat. But that’s what makes the broader pattern so important: Trump appears to have a soft spot for politicians accused of — and in some cases, convicted of — corruption charges, regardless of party.

In the president’s first term, for example, he pardoned seven former Republican members of Congress, each of whom had been convicted of corruption charges: New York’s Chris Collins, California’s Duncan Hunter, Texas’ Steve Stockman, Arizona’s Rick Renzi, North Carolina’s Robin Hayes, Michigan’s Mark Siljander and California’s Randall “Duke” Cunningham......

Let’s also not forget that Trump’s Justice Department has also abandoned the criminal case against a former Republican congressman who’d already been found guilty of corruption by a jury, while simultaneously taking steps to abandon a corruption investigation targeting an incumbent Republican congressman.

And did I mention that Trump’s DOJ also dropped its corruption charges against New York City Mayor Eric Adams? Because that happened, too.

The message to politicians convicted or accused of corruption couldn’t be clearer: You have a friend in the Oval Office.

[MustLoveBeagles]

19. He only likes Democrats who are criminals

He and Blago are BFF'S

[WestMichRad]

20. Corrupt felonious president pardons yet another corrupt felonious politician.

[RoseTrellis]

25. Approved by Jeffries

Hakeem Jeffries Praises Trump’s Pardon of ‘Beloved’ Democrat: ‘Exactly the Right Outcome’

https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/hakeem-jeffries-praises-trump-pardon-171507006.html

Sigh….

[LetMyPeopleVote]

26. MaddowBlog-Trump didn't do Republicans any favors with his pardon of an indicted congressman

The GOP wanted to use Rep. Henry Cuellar’s criminal indictment against him. The president didn’t seem to care.

Trump didn’t do Republicans any favors with his pardon of an indicted congressman - MS NOW

apple.news/AdKxkGO8sRyW...

— (@oc88.bsky.social) 2025-12-04T16:02:53.235Z

https://www.ms.now/rachel-maddow-show/maddowblog/trump-didnt-do-republicans-any-favors-with-his-pardon-of-an-indicted-congressman

As Democrats look ahead with increased confidence to the 2026 midterm elections, Republicans are narrowing their focus, considering specific races where the GOP can at least try to stem the tide. Near the top of the party’s target list is Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar of Texas, whose Laredo-area district backed Donald Trump by seven points last fall......

The developments are important for a variety of reasons, but for GOP officials, the clemency was a setback: The Republicans’ own president had just taken away a cudgel the party had hoped to use against one of their top 2026 election targets.

What’s more, according to an Axios report, Trump didn’t bother to give his ostensible allies a heads-up, either. From the report:

President Trump didn’t tell Speaker Mike Johnson that he was granting a ‘full and unconditional PARDON’ to Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas) before announcing it on Truth Social this morning, Johnson told Axios. … Trump’s pardon boosts one of House Republicans’ top political targets — and could hamper GOP efforts to protect their razor-thin majority in next year’s midterms.

....As for the president’s rationale, at a White House event on Wednesday afternoon, Trump tried to blame Joe Biden for the series of events.

Trump on Cuellar: "He was treated very badly because he said that people should not be allowed to pour into our country ... he got indicted for speaking the truth."

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) 2025-12-03T21:23:19.591Z

....In other words, Trump didn’t only clear the slate for a lawmaker accused of corruption while simultaneously undermining the work of federal law enforcement officials, he also hurt his own party’s electoral plans because of a ridiculous conspiracy theory that only the president believes.

No wonder GOP officials in Congress sound frustrated.