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Washington.- The president of the United States, Donald Trump, announced this Wednesday the pardon of Texas Democratic Congressman Henry Cuéllar and his wife, Imelda, accused of receiving bribes, because he considers that they were victims of a persecution by the previous Joe Biden government.
"The 'Dishonest' Joe used the FBI and the Department of Justice to 'eliminate' a member of his own party after the highly respected Congressman Henry Cuéllar bravely spoke out against Biden's open border policy and border catastrophe," Trump asserted on his social network, Truth Social.You may be interested in: http://Marco Rubio warns that Maduro “will not be able to make fun of” Donald Trump in eventual negotiations
Cuéllar was accused in May 2024 of accepting $600,000 in bribes from a Mexican bank, identified in the press as Banco Azteca, although it is not mentioned in the official indictment, and from an energy company controlled by the Government of Azerbaijan in exchange for using his position to benefit said entities. "Joe 'the Sleeper' chased the congressman, and even his wonderful wife, Imelda, simply for telling the TRUTH," Trump wrote after attacking the Democrats and accusing them of being a "total and absolute threat to democracy." "I hereby announce my full and unconditional pardon to the beloved Texas congressman Henry Cuéllar and Imelda. Henry, I don't know you, but tonight you can sleep soundly: your nightmare is finally over!" he noted. In statements to reporters, Cuéllar said that the pardon took him by "surprise", thanked the president and expressed confidence that he will win re-election in the midterm elections of November 2026. This adds to several controversial pardons by Trump, such as those of those responsible for the assault on the Capitol; that of former Republican congressman George Santos, imprisoned for fraud; or that of former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández, sentenced to 45 years in prison for drug trafficking. The president accompanied the message with a letter signed by the congressman's daughters in which they asked for a pardon for their parents. In the letter, they thanked Trump in advance for his "compassion" and for "bringing hope" to families like theirs. Cuéllar, a member of Congress since 2005, is part of the more moderate Democrats and during the past Administration he criticized Biden's immigration policy and aligned himself with positions closer to those now defended by Trump. In the November 2024 elections, when he was already accused, he was re-elected to the position.
