President Donald Trump pardoned Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas), the president announced in a Truth Social post on Wednesday, blaming former President Joe Biden for weaponizing the Justice Department against his opponents.
“Sleepy Joe went after the Congressman, and even the Congressman’s wonderful wife, Imelda, simply for speaking the TRUTH,” Trump wrote. “It is unAmerican and, as I previously stated, the Radical Left Democrats are a complete and total threat to Democracy.”
Cuellar and his wife were charged in 2024 with accepting $600,000 in bribes from foreign entities. The moderate Democrat — who has long been a battleground target for Republicans — was nonetheless reelected to his South Texas seat in November.
Trump’s pardon of Cuellar comes just a day after national Republicans got their top recruit to challenge him in a seat made redder thanks to Texas’ mid-decade redistricting. Webb County Judge Tano Tijerina, a former Democrat who switched parties last year, announced his campaign for the 28th District as a Republican on Tuesday after months of speculation.
Cuellar’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment on his pardon, but he thanked Trump in a social media post shortly after the president’s announcement. The longtime lawmaker had denied any criminal allegations in a statement following his indictment.
“I want to thank President Trump for his tremendous leadership and for taking the time to look at the facts,” Cuellar wrote on X. “This decision clears the air and lets us move forward for South Texas.”
On Truth Social on Wednesday, Trump accused the Biden administration of targeting Cuellar, even though he is a Democrat, due to the lawmaker’s position on immigration.
The Texan had been a vocal critic of Biden and his immigration policies, telling POLITICO in 2023 that he believed Biden was too influenced by his party’s left flank on immigration.
“They will attack, rob, lie, cheat, destroy, and decimate anyone who dares to oppose their far left Agenda, and Agenda that, if left unchecked, will obliterate our magnificent country,” Trump wrote.
Attached to the president’s Truth Social post was a letter sent by Cuellar’s children. They described their parents as “good, decent people who have spent their lives giving more than they’ve taken” and raised concerns that “our father’s independence and honesty may have contributed to how this case began.”
This isn’t the first time Trump has dropped charges against a Democratic official. In February, the Justice Department tossed a bribery case against New York City Mayor Eric Adams, reportedly part of an effort to gain his cooperation on immigration enforcement in the city.
The president has made extensive use of his clemency powers since retaking office, most recently to pardon former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández. Hernández faced a 45-year prison sentence after being convicted on drug trafficking charges in 2024.
Ben Johansen and Jessica Piper contributed to this report.
