Donald Trump lashed out at U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar for deciding to seek reelection as a Democrat after the president pardoned the Texan and his wife of federal corruption charges.
“Can you imagine???” Trump said Sunday at the beginning of a lengthy social media post, saying that the charges against Cuellar and his wife, Imelda, were politically driven by the administration of former President Joe Biden.
Federal prosecutors had charged the Cuellars with accepting about $600,000 in bribes in exchange for influencing policy to aid an Azerbaijani oil company and a Mexican bank. Earlier this year, a judge dismissed some of the counts against the Cuellars and moved their trial to 2026. The two have denied wrongdoing.
Trump pardoned the Cuellars on Dec. 3, saying they deserved it because they had spoken out against Biden’s border policies. The longtime House member is one of the most conservative members of his party’s caucus, espousing pro-gun and anti-abortion-rights positions. He also represents a district on the U.S.-Mexico border and has praised some of Trump’s efforts to strengthen border security.
“THEN IT HAPPENED!!!” Trump posted on Sunday about Cuellar’s campaign announcement, noting that as a Democrat, Cuellar would “work with the same Radical Left Scum that just weeks before wanted him and his wife to spend the rest of their lives in prison.”
“Such a lack of LOYALTY!” Trump said. “Oh well, next time, no more Mr. Nice guy!”
Cuellar, 70, who appeared on Fox News’ “Sunday Morning Futures,” said he was praying for Trump and his family because “if the president succeeds, the country succeeds.”
“I’m an American, I’m a Texan and I’m a Democrat, in that order. And I think anybody that puts party before their country is doing a disservice to their country,” Cuellar added.
