Overview
- Days after granting clemency, President Trump attacked Rep. Henry Cuellar on Truth Social for not switching parties, calling it a “lack of LOYALTY” and warning “no more Mr. Nice guy.”
- Cuellar said on Fox News that he will seek reelection as a Democrat and described himself as a conservative Democrat willing to work with the administration.
- Trump’s pardon covered Cuellar and his wife, Imelda, ending a federal case that alleged roughly $600,000 in payments tied to an Azerbaijani energy firm and a Mexican bank; their trial had been scheduled for April and they maintained their innocence.
- Trump said he decided to pardon the Cuellars after receiving a “beautiful letter” from their daughters and portrayed the prosecution as unfair.
- The House Ethics Committee review of Cuellar remains active, and coverage frames the fallout in the context of 2026 House control and GOP ambitions in Texas following recent redistricting.