So TX blue dog Henry CUELLAR was visited by FBI for trips to oil/gas rich Azerbaijan(no TX oil/gas?)

[UTUSN]

He frequents Faux outlets and comes across as "reasonable" and willing to talk "bi-partisanly" but one wingnut said, "Yeah, he talks nicely to us but in the end he votes with PELOSI."

His District is headquartered in Laredo, TX, right on the border, one of the lowest income anywhere, and he has been feeding Faux fuel to criticize BIDEN-HARRIS along the lines of all Faux immigration talking points.

All the media stories about the FBI raid(?) show he's got quite the mansion for such a low income area.

*****QUOTE******

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/rep-cuellar-staff-took-sponsored-trips-azerbaijan-coordinated-by-convicted-businessman

Rep. Cuellar, staff took sponsored trips to Azerbaijan coordinated by convicted businessman
One trip included a stay at a luxury hotel

Records show that Democratic Rep. Henry Cuellar of Texas and his staff took multiple sponsored trips to the country of Azerbaijan in recent years as he finds himself reportedly entangled in a federal probe investigating ties between U.S. businessmen and the former Soviet republic.

Documents obtained by Fox News show that in 2013, Cuellar and his wife took a $25,000 trip to Turkey and Azerbaijan which included a stay at a luxury hotel and was sponsored by the Turquoise Council of Americans and Eurasians. ….

The trip was approved by the House Ethics Committee and, according to the Intercept, Turquoise Council president Kemal Oksuz told the committee that no foreign money was used to pay for the trip.

Oksuz pleaded guilty in 2018 for failing to disclose the fact that a different congressional trip to Azerbaijan in 2013, which Cuellar did not attend, had been paid for by a foreign government. Oksuz was convicted in 2019. ....

******UNQUOTE****

[Celerity]

3. that is not how it works here, sorry (and I am NO fan of Cuellar, I think he is the worst Dem in

House, he fundraises and campaigned for a MAGAt Rethug (John Carter), he is a forced birther, is A rated by the NRA, is anti LGBTQ, is anti-immigrant, bashes Biden and Harris all the time, is anti green, massively pro private prison and pro big oil, etc etc) His district has never once elected a Rethug in its entire history, so he doesn't have the Manchin excuse either.

[LeftInTX]

4. It's accurate

EARLIER THIS WEEK, the FBI raided the Laredo, Texas, home of Rep. Henry Cuellar. According to ABC News, the raid was made in connection with an ongoing investigation linked to Azerbaijan. While little is known about this specific FBI probe, which CNN reported involves the Department of Justice’s Public Integrity Section, Cuellar’s relationship to Azerbaijan is well documented.

In fact, an Azerbaijani organization Cuellar has had close ties with over the years was previously the subject of an FBI investigation, with its president pleading guilty to charges of wooing members of Congress by serving as a front for the nation’s wholly owned oil company.

In January 2013, Cuellar and his spouse flew to Turkey and Azerbaijan on a trip sponsored by an entity calling itself the Turquoise Council of Americans and Eurasians, according to congressional disclosure reports. The trip for the Cuellars cost just south of $20,000 and was approved by the House Ethics Committee.

Kemal Oksuz, listed as Turquoise Council president, told the Ethics Committee that no foreign money paid for the trip, according to disclosures, but that claim is questionable given events that unfolded not long after.

https://theintercept.com/2022/01/21/henry-cuellar-azerbaijan-fbi-texas/

[UTUSN]

7. Thank you. Just tagging things as "wingnut sources" without evaluating is kneejerk self-defeating.

And I'm not referring to Celerity, who is a perceptive and intelligent poster, whom I've Recc'd many times.

I realize "wingnut sources" is a DU policy, but a narrow interpretation of that is, well, *narrow*. I pick up nuggets of truth/facts from wherever I find them.

And I fully realize, from the scars of flamefests I bear, that narrow interpretations exist among us (NOT Celerity).

[Celerity]

11. I never disputed the facts at all, and I am no Cuellar fan, far from it

[UTUSN]

13. Nor am I a CUELLAR fan, just to be clear as I think my own comments say, lol.

[Celerity]

14. all good!! cheers

[LeftInTX]

5. I gotta wonder if a Republican mole was involved...

According to the Houston Chronicle, the Republicans want Jessica to win the primary.

I think South Texas won't be very fond of the Azerbaijan connection.....

It does not benefit South Texas.

[UTUSN]

9. "Jessica" being Jessica CISNEROS, a Progressive supported by Bernie & AOC? Why would Repukes want

her to win if CUELLAR plays footsie with wingnuts? Am curious about the incongruity.

[LeftInTX]

10. They think she will lose in the general to a GOP

[UTUSN]

12. AHhh. That fits their KKKarl strategy of getting peeps to vote against their best interests.

Repeating, Laredo is one of the poorest places ever. So they would vote for the fatcats, Got it.

[LeftInTX]

15. That area didn't do very well with Biden

But in redistricting, much more of the district went San Antonio, which is more progressive than Laredo.

The Rio Grande Valley is blue dog territory.

[blogslug]

6. Here's an ABC story

https://abcnews.go.com/US/feds-issue-subpoenas-seeking-records-related-rep-cuellar/story?id=82405832

...The subpoena reviewed by ABC News specifically seeks records related to at least three Texas-based companies for which online databases identify Imelda Cuellar as an officer or director. It also seeks records relating to an array of logistics-related firms and cultural advocacy organizations from around the United States, many of them with ties to Azerbaijan, which sits on the Caspian Sea near Iran, Russia and Georgia.
MORE: FBI raid on House Democrat's home related to Azerbaijan probe, source says

Touting Azerbaijan as "a secular, modern, Muslim country," Cuellar has been an outspoken advocate for the nation over the past decade, even serving as a co-chair of the Congressional Azerbaijan Caucus.

He publicly called Azerbaijan "a strong ally of the United States" and a key partner in "the global war on terrorism," noting that -- in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks -- it provided an important route for sending reinforcements and supplies to American forces in Afghanistan.

On the House floor last year, Cuellar offered remarks to "honor the diplomatic tour" of Azerbaijan's long-serving ambassador to the United States, Elin Suleymanov, describing Suleymanov as "a force of peace and diplomacy."

and the Houston Chronicle:

https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/texas/article/Texas-Rep-Henry-Cuellar-s-ties-to-nation-of-16795197.php

WASHINGTON — Texas Congressman Henry Cuellar, whose Laredo home and campaign headquarters were searched by FBI agents this week, has ties to a Houston-based businessman who was convicted of lying to Congress about Azerbaijan’s role in funding a 2013 trip to the western Asian nation for 10 lawmakers, federal records show.

Kemal Oksuz, who pleaded guilty in that case, was a regular campaign donor to Cuellar and other Texas politicians and in 2015 enlisted Cuellar to establish a partnership between Texas A&M International University and the Assembly of the Friends of Azerbaijan, one of the nonprofits used to help funnel money for that trip.

“My thanks to Congressman Cuellar for his playing a very instrumental role for this affiliation,” Oksuz said in a statement at the time.

It’s unclear why the FBI is investigating Cuellar now, but ABC News reported it is part of a wide-ranging federal probe relating to the former Soviet state and several U.S. businessmen. Cuellar and his wife had been issued subpoenas for information including records related to Oksuz and the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic, ABC reported Friday...

[UTUSN]

8. Thanks for the legwork.

[Klaralven]

16. Jessica Cisneros and Tannya Benavides are running against him in the primary

In the 2020 Democratic primary, Cuellar defeated Cisneros 51.8 percent to 48.2 percent. In that primary, Cisneros was endorsed by Justice Democrats, Sen. Bernie Sanders, and members of The Squad, while Cuellar was endorsed by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. Political commentators expect endorsements in this year's race to continue to reflect this divide between the wings of the Democratic Party.

https://ballotpedia.org/Jessica_Cisneros

https://ballotpedia.org/Tannya_Benavides