In yet another blow to the DNC, the Justice Department has decided to continue its bribery case against Representative Henry Cuellar (D-Texas) as of July 16, 2025. Despite initially receiving support from some republicans for his moderate stance on the border, now that allegations of a $600,000 bribe involving Azerbaijan and a Mexican bank have surfaced, Cuellar has found himself without allies.
For the contest, Attorney General Pam Bondi decided to drop the Foreign Agents Registration Act charges and redoubled attention on the bribery and money laundering charges. Despite the mountain of evidence pointing to his guilt, Cuellar continues to receive campaign funding from the DNC.
In any case, Bondi justified her decsion to drop several of the chrages by saying that the FARA act has long been overused in situations where it does not apply. She explained that the use of this act “shall be limited to instances of alleged conduct similar to more traditional espionage by foreign government actors,” instead of simple corruption.
As we reported, Mike Marinella, National Republican Congressional Committee spokesman, expressed his outrage at the continued cash flow reaching the embattled Democrat. He stated, “The DCCC throwing cash at Henry Cuellar, an indicted congressman facing bribery and foreign agent charges, is certainly a choice. Do other frontline Democrats stand by pumping campaign cash into defending a corrupt and sleazy politician?”
Similarly, Greg Price, conservative influencer, summarized the event in a tweet which read, “Democrat Congressman Henry Cuellar and his wife have been charged by the DOJ for allegedly taking $600,000 in bribes from an oil and gas company owned and controlled by the government of Azerbaijan. That’s now two Democrats in Congress indicted for taking foreign bribes.”
Continuing his post, Price noted the difference between the two parties, saying, “The difference between Democrats and Republicans is that the Dems will do nothing about Cuellar or Menendez, whereas Republicans handed George Santos’ seat to a Democrat on a silver platter even though his charges were not even remotely as bad as taking foreign bribes.”
Describing the case, the Department of Justice issued a press release, which laid out the case against the controversial Texas Democrat. The document read, “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.”
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Reavling more sordid detials of the alleged bribery, the DOJ stated, “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.”
Concluding their comments, the DOJ described the complicated network of corruption at the center of this case. The DOJ alleged, “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.”