Former President Donald Trump harshly criticized President Joe Biden on Monday for the indictment of Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, claiming on Truth Social that charges were brought against Cuellar only because he opposed Biden's policies on the southern border.
Cuellar and his wife were indicted on conspiracy and bribery charges Friday in connection with a U.S. Department of Justice investigation into relations between U.S. business leaders and the former Soviet republic of Azerbaijan.
"Biden just indicted Henry Cuellar because the respected Democrat congressman wouldn't play Crooked Joe's open border game," Trump wrote. "He was for border control, so they said, 'Let's use the FBI and DOJ to take him out!'"
Trump added that "this is the way they operate. They're a bunch of D.C. thugs, and at some point they will be paying a very big price for what they have done to our country. Crooked Joe Biden is a threat to democracy."
Cuellar was one of 13 House Democrats who joined with all Republicans to vote in favor earlier this month of a resolution denouncing the Biden administration's immigration policies.
Trump's messaging on the indictment was different than the two Republican challengers who will face off in a runoff later this month for the chance to challenge Cuellar in the November elections: Jay Furman and Lazaro Garza, the Texas Tribune reported.
Furman slammed Cuellar as being part of an establishment that is "selling us to other nations," adding that "they're trading us for their deep pockets and their forever policies that are against the values of South Texas."
Garza said "there is no place for corruption in Congress."
The National Republican Congressional Committee also criticized Cuellar, issuing a statement that "if his colleagues truly believe in putting 'people over politics,' they will call on him to resign. If not — they are hypocrites whose statements about public service aren't worth the paper they're written on," according to the Texas Tribune.
Brian Freeman ✉
Brian Freeman, a Newsmax writer based in Israel, has more than three decades writing and editing about culture and politics for newspapers, online and television.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.