Ascendant, Henry Cuellar Won't Switch Parties: I didn't know there was such a rumor

From the Texas Tribune
"U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Laredo, who survived the GOP rout last November, didn’t mince words when asked if he’d ever switch parties — as he's occasionally rumored to be considering. “Hell no,” he said Wednesday after he was sworn-in for a fourth term in the U.S. House.
A member of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and what's left of the moderate Blue Dog coalition, Cuellar said Texas lawmakers from his party who recently switched to the GOP should have first considered their options.

“I know we have a few members [state Rep. Aaron Peña, R-Edinburg, and state Rep. Allan Ritter, R-Nederland] who have already switched over at the state legislature. I disagree with that. I think what they could have done, if they wanted to stay more conservative, is start a Blue Dog coalition in Texas,” he said.

Earlier this week, Cuellar was named to a leadership position by former Speaker and now Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi: He'll serve as vice-chairman of the Democrats' Steering and Policy Committee, an assignment that he said will give him a better view of the inner workings of the 112th Congress."