U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar, D-El Paso, also called for Menendez to step down last September, but she is barred from discussing the Cuellar case due to her seat on the House Ethics Committee.
Reps. Jasmine Crockett of Dallas, Lloyd Doggett of Austin, Sylvia Garcia of Houston, Vicente Gonzalez of McAllen, Casar and Castro all voted to expel Santos before the House Ethics report.
Doggett added that Cuellar shouldn’t be in a leadership position after the indictment and commended him for stepping down as top Democrat on the House Appropriations Homeland Security subcommittee.
House Democratic Caucus Chair Pete Aguilar, D-California, drew a distinction between Cuellar, a nine-term congressman, and Santos, a freshman with no public service record during a Tuesday news conference.
Democratic U.S. Rep. Colin Allred, who is challenging Cruz in the Senate race, said in a statement that the "allegations are concerning, but like every American, Congressman Cuellar deserves his day in court to be tried before a jury of his peers.” He voted against expelling Santos before the House Ethics report was released.
Cuellar’s former chief of staff and longtime campaign aide Colin Strother could also help investigators in the case, The San Antonio Express News reported.
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