Henry Cuellar assigned to leadership role by Pelosi

Blue Dog Henry Cuellar fetches leadership role

The San Antonio Express-News is reporting today that Laredo's Henry Cuellar has a new assignment. It is considered a leadership role and the Express-News describes it as a rather "tough one". Cuellar's caucusing with the Blue Dog democrats might help him out in the Republican-controlled U.S. House of representatives. Here's part of the article :

As Democrats assumed a diminished role in Congress, one South Texas lawmaker moved up the leadership ladder with a tough assignment. Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Laredo, was tapped by House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., as one of two vice chairs for the steering and policy committee. Essentially, Cuellar and Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., two relatively junior members of Congress, will communicate Democratic policies to members and the public. The decision to get junior members into the leadership mix comes on the heels of the party's shellacking last November.

Last year, Cuellar was the Democratic sponsor of a House bill passed by Congress and backed by the Obama administration that reforms procurement, or spending procedures, to eliminate fraud and waste. In one of his first actions this year, Cuellar filed a bill that would require Congress to balance the budget every year.

Cuellar, the only Texan affiliated with the conservative Blue Dog Caucus, was picked by Pelosi because of his work on deficit reduction — an issue that Republicans have made a top priority this year. “I'm proud of his ongoing work in that regard, and he will be working in that way as we develop our priorities and we go forward,” Pelosi said.

The leadership job Cuellar has been handed is a tough one. He will be delivering bad news to South Texas leaders about upcoming cuts that no doubt will impact local budgets and revenues.