Scoop: Johnson blindsided by Trump's Cuellar pardon
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House Speaker Mike Johnson during a Capitol Hill news conference on Dec. 2. Photo: Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
President Trump didn't tell Speaker Mike Johnson that he was granting a "full and unconditional PARDON" to Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas) before announcing it on Truth Social this morning, Johnson told Axios.
Why it matters: Trump's pardon boosts one of House Republicans' top political targets — and could hamper GOP efforts to protect their razor-thin majority in next year's midterms.
- "I didn't know anything about it," Johnson told Axios Wednesday afternoon.
- Asked if he was surprised by Trump's pardon, Johnson said: "I think he had talked about that since last spring. It shouldn't be a huge surprise to anyone. But no, I didn't discuss it with him."
National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Richard Hudson (N.C.) told Axios that he found out about Trump's pardon on X.
- The pardon "certainly makes it tougher" for the GOP to flip Cuellar's South Texas seat, Hudson said.
Driving the news: Trump not only pardoned Cuellar — he praised him, calling the Texas Democrat "highly respected" and "beloved."
- Trump accused the Biden administration of "weaponizing the Justice System" and prosecuting Cuellar because he "bravely spoke out against … the Biden Border 'Catastrophe.'"
The other side: Cuellar thanked Trump for the pardon on X, but told reporters he will run for reelection as a Democrat and is not considering switching parties.
- Earlier this year, Democrats were privately concerned that Cuellar, a conservative Democrat, might reconstitute himself as a Republican if a presidential pardon was in the offing.
Zoom out: For the second time in two weeks, Trump has undercut the NRCC — the very organization he's relying on to help safeguard the party's control of the House.
- The NRCC on Nov. 23, blasted Democrats over Cuellar's legal troubles, posting on X: House Democrats including 'Leader' Hakeem Jeffries are still bankrolling criminally charged Texas Democrat Henry Cuellar."
- Last week, Trump also heaped praise on New York Mayor-elect Zorhan Mamdani during an Oval Office visit, complicating the NRCC's efforts to cast Mamdani as a political bogeyman.
Between the lines: NRCC Communications Director Will Kiley, in a statement to Axios, called the White House "an indispensable partner for the NRCC," adding, "we're laser-focused on holding the House and delivering the governing majority the President needs to execute his full agenda."
Zoom in: On Monday, Webb County Judge Tano Tijerina — a Democrat-turned-Republican — announced his candidacy for Cuellar's district, which Trump won by 7 points in 2024.
- The district would grow slightly redder under the new Texas congressional map.
- Republicans have long targeted Cuellar, but he has proven difficult to defeat in general elections, even under the cloud of indictment.
- In May of 2024, federal prosecutors charged Cuellar and his wife with accepting nearly $600,000 in bribes in exchange for influencing U.S. foreign policy in favor of Azerbaijan and a Mexican bank.
Editor's note: This story has been updated with additional reporting.
