President Donald Trump’s outburst Sunday morning at Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-TX) was proof that the president knows his party is in for a dramatic loss next year in the midterm elections, Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) asserted Sunday on MS NOW.
Earlier this week, Trump pardoned Cuellar, who was indicted last year on bribery, acting as a foreign agent, money laundering and conspiracy charges. However, after learning of Cuellar’s decision to run for re-election as a Democrat, Trump attacked the right-wing Democrat for demonstrating “such a lack of loyalty.”
Trump’s outburst, Khanna argued, was motivated by the president’s clear “corrupt motives,” and fear of an election blowout that would result in House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) replacing House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA).
“The thing with Donald Trump is he can't keep his corrupt motives hidden, he says out in the open exactly what he expects!” Khanna said.
“He expected that if he pardoned Rep. Cuellar, Cuellar would run as a Republican, and he's so desperate to hold onto the House of Representatives. He sees the same polling everyone does, he knows we're going to have 20, 30 seats flipped and Hakeem Jeffries become speaker, and he's trying everything!”
Indeed, Trump’s favorability has plummeted among voters in recent weeks, having suffered “probably the worst 10-day period in the polls his entire second term” in late November. The Republican Party hasn’t fared much better, with experts seeing no clear path for the GOP to hold onto its slim House majority next year as Trump’s unfavourability continues to drag the entire party down along with him.
On Trump’s most-recent use of his pardon authority, Khanna also made a major announcement.
“My own view – and I'm discussing this with other members of Congress – is that we need to abolish the pardon power for the president; it's archaic, it's a vestige of monarchy, and it's something that Trump is abusing to the maximum degree,” Khanna said. “I believe the cracks in the MAGA coalition are finally taking place, including in the Congress.”
Rep. @RoKhanna says Trump's recent rant against @RepCuellar for running for re-election as a Dem (after being pardoned by Trump for bribery, conpsiracy and money laundering charges) is proof he knows the GOP is in for a walloping next year in the midterms. pic.twitter.com/mCMSJnEame
— Alexander Willis (@ReporterWillis) December 7, 2025