Trump Pardons Dem. Rep. Henry Cuellar After $600K Foreign Bribery Case
President Donald Trump issued a full pardon Tuesday for Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar of Texas and his wife, abruptly ending a federal bribery and conspiracy case that accused the couple of accepting nearly $600,000 in payments tied to foreign entities.
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Cuellar had been indicted in 2024 on allegations that he took bribes routed through sham consulting contracts in exchange for pushing U.S. policy positions favorable to an Azerbaijani state-owned energy company and a Mexican bank. Prosecutors said the money was funneled through shell companies controlled by Cuellar’s wife and used for personal expenses, including credit card bills and luxury purchases.
If convicted, the Cuellars faced decades in prison. The case was headed for a 2026 trial before Trump’s intervention ended it entirely.
Trump defended the pardon as a correction of what he called a “politically motivated prosecution,” claiming Cuellar was targeted for criticizing Biden-era immigration policy. He said he had never met Cuellar but believed the Justice Department had been “weaponized.”
Cuellar thanked Trump immediately, saying the pardon “gives us a clean slate” and allows him to resume his work representing South Texas. The Justice Department declined to comment.
The move drew swift backlash from ethics experts and political watchdogs who warn the pardon normalizes political corruption and undermines accountability in foreign-influence cases. Critics also note that Trump has repeatedly used clemency to absolve elected officials, donors, and allies facing corruption or fraud allegations.
With the case now closed, Cuellar returns to Congress legally cleared—but the allegations and the foreign-influence concerns behind them remain unresolved.