Doesn’t seem clear for what. Would like to see the charges and evidence before totally throwing him under the bus, but there does seem to be an uptick in dirty lawmakers lately. https://www.cnn.com/2024/05/03/politics/henry-cuellar-indictment-doj/index.html
With all the claims of witch hunts and political persecution, it's good to see justice being served regardless of political affiliation. I say that not knowing what the actual charges are, but based on his comments it seems to have something to do with his wife and Azerbaijan. Could be a number of things so I guess we'll see when the charges are made public.
The party actually backed him in his last primary over a progressive challenger, and is currently running unopposed with the endorsement of key Democratic leadership, including Jefferies and Pelosi
Do I throw a temper tantrum now about witch hunts, persecution, and weaponization of the government, or does that come later? Unlike some folks, I'm glad Cuellar is being held accountable if he broke the law. Nobody should be above the law in this country, particularly not powerful politicians, wealthy people, or law enforcement.
True, but when they pull this shit and not be transparent about what he is accused of, it is a very bad look. The justice department knows that half of the country thinks they are corrupt, yet they continue to not be up front and transparent. Typical government
To be clear, I have worked in government contracting for over 90% of my professional career. Some of the most unethical things I have seen have been perpetuated by government agencies and employees. I have been involved in several investigations and have dealt with more government attorneys than I would ever want on anyone. I trust them less than I do ACC football refs.
Hadn't seen this. Same here. But this is just a political witch hunt. He can't get a fair trial there.
The DOJ could have leaked the information but seems at least as probable to me that the Congressman is trying to get out ahead of the story.
Paragraph 1 and 2 of the linked article. "Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar of Texas and his wife have been charged with accepting nearly $600,000 in bribes from two foreign entities, according to an indictment in federal court in Texas. The alleged scheme took place from late 2014 through at least November 2021, the indictment says." It's a federal indictment, there's simply not that much information available right now.
About the most serious kind of public corruption there is in my view. Certainly warrants investigation
U.S. Congressman Henry Cuellar and His Wife Charged with Bribery, Unlawful Foreign Influence, and Money Laundering Schemes An indictment was unsealed today in the Southern District of Texas charging U.S. Congressman Enrique Roberto “Henry” Cuellar, 68, and his wife, Imelda Cuellar, 67, both of Laredo, Texas, with participating in two schemes involving bribery, unlawful foreign influence, and money laundering. Congressman Cuellar and Imelda Cuellar made their initial court appearance today before U.S. Magistrate Judge Dena Palermo in Houston. According to court documents, beginning in at least December 2014 and continuing through at least November 2021, Congressman Cuellar and Imelda Cuellar allegedly accepted approximately $600,000 in bribes from two foreign entities: an oil and gas company wholly owned and controlled by the Government of Azerbaijan, and a bank headquartered in Mexico City. The bribe payments were allegedly laundered, pursuant to sham consulting contracts, through a series of front companies and middlemen into shell companies owned by Imelda Cuellar, who performed little to no legitimate work under the contracts. In exchange for the bribes paid by the Azerbaijani oil and gas company, Congressman Cuellar allegedly agreed to use his office to influence U.S. foreign policy in favor of Azerbaijan. In exchange for the bribes paid by the Mexican bank, Congressman Cuellar allegedly agreed to influence legislative activity and to advise and pressure high-ranking U.S. Executive Branch officials regarding measures beneficial to the bank. Congressman Cuellar and Imelda Cuellar are each charged with the following offenses and if convicted, face maximum penalties as indicated: two counts of conspiracy to commit bribery of a federal official and to have a public official act as an agent of a foreign principal, five years in prison on each count; two counts of bribery of a federal official, 15 years in prison on each count; two counts of conspiracy to commit honest services wire fraud, 20 years in prison on each count; two counts of violating the ban on public officials acting as agents of a foreign principal, two years in prison on each count; one count of conspiracy to commit concealment money laundering, 20 years in prison; and five counts of money laundering, 20 years in prison on each count. Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Nicole M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division; Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department’s National Security Division; Assistant Director Michael D. Nordwall of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division; and Deputy Assistant Inspector General Jason Loeffler and Special Agent in Charge Chris Hileman of the Department of State Office of Inspector General (DOS-OIG) made the announcement.
In case you were wondering about " Why Azerbaijan?" They have been involved with a territorial dispute with Armenia, which resulted in some mass displacement and possible ethnic cleansing. Armenia turns towards west in search of allies amid Azerbaijan tensions Want to do ethnic cleansing or territorial grabs? Lobby members of the US government!
