Republicans put up little fight in Henry Cuellar’s race after indictment

"Republicans put up little fight in Henry Cuellar’s race after indictment" was first published by The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan media organization that informs Texans — and engages with them — about public policy, politics, government and statewide issues.

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WASHINGTON — Republicans were handed a gift earlier this year, when U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar — a beloved son of Laredo — was indicted on charges of bribery, money laundering and working for the Azerbaijanis and a Mexican bank.

The South Texas congressman was one of the GOP’s biggest targets last election cycle, and a few weeks after his indictment, the National Republican Congressional Committee, the party’s U.S. House campaign arm, announced he was once again on their hit list.

But with just a few weeks until Election Day, Republicans have little to show for it. Their candidate, Jay Furman, raised a modest $323,000 this cycle through the end of September with over $181,000 in debts, according to a filing with the Federal Election Commission. For comparison, Cuellar raised over $2.3 million with no debts.

There have been no ad reservations announced by the NRCC or the Congressional Leadership Fund — Republicans’ main super PAC for the U.S. House — in Laredo, the district’s population center. Meanwhile, both groups have collectively invested over $2 million in Harlingen to boost former Rep. Mayra Flores, a Republican, in her bid to unseat Democratic Rep. Vicente Gonzalez in another competitive South Texas race. GOP leaders also have yet to stump for Furman as House Speaker Mike Johnson of Louisiana did for Flores.

Cuellar is perfectly pleased.

“As far as we know, there's no investment in the race, and we really haven't seen our opponent around,” Cuellar said in an interview. “I think he's put up a few signs.”

When asked about the NRCC’s involvement in his race, Furman declined to specify how the group has helped him, though he said it has “opened up to us to help extend our campaign capabilities.”

“We're in an active conversation right now, and I can't speak more to that,” Furman said.

The NRCC is strapped for cash this cycle relative to its Democratic counterpart. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee has raised more than $67 million more than the NRCC as of the end of August, incentivizing Republicans to be more strategic in their spending.

Federal prosecutors accuse Cuellar of abusing his office to advance favorable policies for the Azerbaijani government and the Mexico-based Banco Azteca. In exchange, Cuellar received over $600,000 in bribes, according to the indictment. Cuellar is a member of the House Appropriations Committee and chaired its subcommittee on Homeland Security. He stepped down from the chairmanship after the indictment.

Cuellar is barred from leaving Texas except for congressional work in Washington. He has not yet faced wide cries for his resignation, with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries maintaining his endorsement for Cuellar.

Cuellar maintains his innocence, saying his behavior is in line with other members of Congress. He declined to comment on the case during a recent interview.

Republicans are still bullish in the region. They have been focusing predominantly in Flores’ Rio Grande Valley-based 34th Congressional District, which they see as their biggest offensive opportunity. Republicans have reserved $800,000 in NRCC ad buys targeting the district. The Congressional Leadership Fund also reserved $1.9 million in ad reservations in the district.

Furman’s team also expresses confidence his grassroots effort can make a dent, regardless of investment from national groups. Hispanic voters’ shifting support for conservative stances and unfavorable coverage of Cuellar’s indictment have given Furman hope that Cuellar remains vulnerable. Internal NRCC polling in the district shows former President Donald Trump pulling ahead of Vice President Kamala Harris in the presidential race, potentially giving Furman a leg up.

And despite Cuellar’s deep coffers, he’s had to spend a considerable portion on his legal fees. Cuellar’s trial begins next spring.

“Commander Furman looks forward to communicating with all of the voters in South Texas’ 28th Congressional District and is prepared to deliver his own plan for how to reduce inflation, make everyday necessities affordable again for South Texans and end the policy of open borders,” said Ross Hunt, a seasoned Republican campaign operative working on Furman’s campaign. “Commander Furman’s campaign anticipates being able to fully fund communicating this message to all the likely voters of his district.”

Furman announced a series of TV ads on Tuesday accusing Cullar of being corrupt and weak on the border. He has also launched a website targeting Cuellar, calling him a “corrupt elitist who stands with Nancy Pelosi and Joe Biden.”

“Henry Cuellar’s 95% voting record with Biden-Harris has made life harder for families from Laredo to San Antonio,” Furman said in an ad. “Our district deserves a representative who goes to DC to help the people of South Texas—not for his own profit.”

Before Cuellar’s indictment, the district was hardly on Republicans’ radar this cycle. Cuellar defeated Republican candidate Cassy Garcia in 2022 by a 13-point margin in a closely watched race where Republicans and Democrats collectively spent over $20 million. The expensive and deep defeat warded Republicans off of launching another serious challenge this cycle.

Furman doesn’t fit the profile of a typical candidate national Republicans would want to challenge a member like Cuellar, who is so ingrained in the area’s politics that Laredo’s airport terminal bears his name. He’s a political neophyte with positions often to the right of Republican leadership. He has previously expressed antipathy toward House Republican leadership, including Johnson, particularly over continued aid for Ukraine.

“I'm not in Speaker Johnson's camp ideologically in his vote, or in his leadership, as recently expressed,” Furman said in May ahead of his primary runoff about Johnson’s support for Ukraine.

Still, Furman stressed at the time that he would be willing to meet with Johnson and work with him in the general election. He echoed the sentiment in a recent interview, where Furman said “I support the leadership.”

“In January, when President Trump is sworn in, we're going to have to hit the ground sprinting to save our ship,” Furman said in the interview. “If we don't, then we may lose this entire democratic experiment.”

Furman has secured endorsements from several right-wing Republicans in Congress, including U.S. Reps. Chip Roy, Byron Donalds and Lauren Boebert. U.S. House Homeland Security Chair Mark Green and Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller also support him.

“Henry Cuellar is leaving Congress one way or another — at the ballot box or in handcuffs,” NRCC spokesperson Delanie Bomar said in a statement. “Every day Henry Cuellar is in office is a day Texans are being cheated out of honest representation.”

This article originally appeared in The Texas Tribune at https://www.texastribune.org/2024/10/16/henry-cuellar-south-texas-indictiment-republicans/.

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