Former President Donald Trump lashed out at Texas Rep. Henry Cuellar after the congressman announced he would seek reelection as a Democrat, despite receiving a presidential pardon for federal bribery and conspiracy charges involving both him and his wife. Trump openly accused Cuellar of disloyalty, implying that the pardon had been granted with the expectation that Cuellar might switch parties and strengthen the GOP’s slim House majority ahead of the 2026 midterms. In a television interview hours later, Cuellar emphasized that he remains a conservative Democrat who is willing to collaborate with the administration “to find common ground.” He said he had prayed for Trump earlier that morning, arguing that a successful presidency benefits the entire country. Drawing on a quote attributed to Lyndon Johnson, Cuellar described himself as an American first, a Texan second, and a Democrat third, stressing that loyalty to country must outweigh party allegiance.
Trump amplified his criticism on social media, arguing that Cuellar was choosing to remain aligned with Democratic leaders—even though, as Trump noted, it was the Biden administration that brought the charges against him. Cuellar’s daughters had personally appealed to Trump for clemency in November, and Trump suggested they would be disappointed by their father’s decision to stay in his party. Trump defended his decision to pardon Cuellar by framing the prosecution as politically “weaponized,” pointing to Cuellar’s outspoken opposition to Biden’s immigration policies as common ground between the two men. Meanwhile, Cuellar insisted he maintains positive relationships within his party and described himself as an independent voice. His district, which spans portions of South Texas and metro San Antonio, was not significantly altered during Trump-backed redistricting efforts, and Cuellar expressed confidence in his reelection prospects. Although he and his wife were accused of accepting payments in exchange for advancing the interests of an Azerbaijan-linked energy company and a Mexican bank, Cuellar maintained their innocence, claiming federal authorities tried and failed to entrap him in a bribery scheme. While the criminal case was wiped away by the pardon, Cuellar still faces a separate inquiry by the House Ethics Committee.