WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump announced Wednesday that he would pardon Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, who was indicted last year on bribery and money laundering charges.
In his Truth Social post, Trump accused Democrats of working to "attack, rob, lie, cheat, destroy, and decimate anyone who dares to oppose their Far Left Agenda, an Agenda that, if left unchecked, will obliterate our magnificent Country."
"Because of these facts, and others, I am hereby announcing my full and unconditional PARDON of beloved Texas Congressman Henry Cuellar, and Imelda," Trump said in the post, referring to Cuellar's wife, who also faces charges.
"Henry, I don’t know you, but you can sleep well tonight — Your nightmare is finally over!" he continued.
Cuellar thanked Trump on X "for his tremendous leadership and for taking the time to look at the facts."
"This pardon gives us a clean slate," Cuellar said in his post. "The noise is gone. The work remains. And I intend to meet it head on. Thank you Mr. President, God bless you, and God bless the United States of America."
Asked about any conversations with the White House ahead of the pardon, Cuellar told reporters that he "didn’t know that this was coming." He said he planned to attend a White House Christmas party next week, where he planned to "thank the president personally."
Asked whether any deal was cut with the White House, Cuellar said, "No."
In his Truth Social post, Trump shared a letter from Cuellar's daughters, Christina and Catherine, urging him to pardon their father.
"When you and your family faced your own challenges, we understood that pain in a very human way," they wrote. "We prayed for you and your family — for your strength, your peace, and your faith to stay strong — because we know that behind the headlines, there are real people who hurt, who love, and who still hope for better days."
Seth DuCharme, one of Cuellar’s lawyers, declined to comment. A Justice Department spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., said in a CNN interview Wednesday that the indictment against Cuellar was “very thin to begin with.”
“I think the outcome was exactly the right outcome,” he said, responding to a question about whether he agreed with the pardon.
The Justice Department indicted Cuellar and his wife in May 2024 on 14 counts, including bribery, wire fraud and money laundering. In August, a U.S. district court dismissed two of the counts, which were related to alleged violations of the Foreign Agent Registration Act.
The indictment accused the couple of accepting "at least $598,000 in bribes from two foreign entities" in exchange for Cuellar’s agreeing "to perform official acts in his capacity as a Member of Congress."
"The bribe payments were laundered, pursuant to sham consulting contracts, through a series of front companies and middlemen into shell companies owned by IMELDA CUELLAR," the initial indictment said, alleging that she "performed little or no legitimate work under the sham contracts."
The indictment accused Henry Cuellar of promising "to use the power and prestige of his office to advance" the interests of Azerbaijan and an unnamed foreign bank.
Both Cuellars pleaded not guilty.
In a Fox News interview Wednesday night, Cuellar insisted that the charges were politically motivated. Asked if he thought the case against him was connected to his critical remarks about the Biden administration's border policies, Cuellar said, "Oh, absolutely. Absolutely, it was weaponized."
Months before Trump said he would pardon the Cuellars, a federal judge denied a motion to dismiss the indictment based on the Constitution’s protections for the speech and debate of members of Congress. Senior U.S. District Judge Lee H. Rosenthal ruled in September that Cuellar was not immune from prosecution.
Two political operatives with ties to Cuellar took plea deals in March 2024, ahead of the indictment's release. They agreed to plead guilty and cooperate with the Justice Department's case, according to court documents released in May 2024. Mina Colin Strother, Cuellar's former campaign manager and chief of staff, and businessman and associate Florencio “Lencho” Rendon had been charged with conspiracy to commit money laundering.
Cuellar filed for re-election in his district ahead of the Monday deadline, according to the Texas Democratic Party’s unofficial list of candidates who have filled out paperwork to run. Texas Republicans targeted his seat with their 2025 redistricting plans, making it several points more GOP-leaning.
“That’s a very competitive district,” House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., told reporters when asked about Trump's pardon of Cuellar. “We’ll have a strong candidate in that district and we’ll win because it will be a great record to run on, and we’re recruiting all-stars to flip some of these blue seats to red.”
Cuellar's is the latest in a series of high-profile pardons and other acts of clemency by Trump, including to several people convicted of charges related to bribery or money laundering.
In February, Trump pardoned former Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich, who was convicted on corruption charges related to bribery (Trump commuted Blagojevich's prison sentence in 2020.) In May, he pardoned Scott Jenkins, a former Virginia sheriff who had been convicted on federal bribery charges. Also in May, he pardoned Jeremy Young Hutchinson, a Republican former Arkansas state senator who was accused of conspiracy to commit bribery, among other charges.
