Democrat Under Indictment for Money Laundering Slams Trump Tariffs: ‘I Have a Lot of Businesses That Are Facing This Uncertainty’

 

Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-TX) – the congressman currently under indictment for bribery and money laundering – criticized President Donald Trump’s most recent trade tariffs on Monday, complaining, “I have a lot of businesses that are facing this uncertainty.”

“Look, I’m a Democrat, but I’m a free trader. I’m a free trader,” said Cuellar during an appearance on CNN NewsNight. “I understand what the president wants to do, and I want to get to what the president got to be, but I have a lot of businesses that are facing this uncertainty, and as a business person you’ve got to know what the certainty is when you deal with it.”

The congressman failed to mention during his appearance that he was currently under indictment for allegedly “participating in two schemes involving bribery, unlawful foreign influence, and money laundering.”

According to the Department of Justice, Cuellar is accused of accepting “approximately $600,000 in bribes from two foreign entities,” which were then allegedly laundered “through a series of front companies and middlemen into shell companies owned by Imelda Cuellar,” the congressman’s wife.

“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,” the Department of Justice stated. “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.”

CNN NewsNight host Abby Phillip also failed to mention Cuellar’s indictment during the congressman’s appearance on Monday.

Trump announced that new 25% tariffs would be implemented against Japan, South Korea, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Laos, South Africa, and Myanmar on Monday.

The president previously implemented a 10% tariff on Azerbaijan earlier this year.

Watch above via CNN.

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