Henry Cuellar
Role at the time: U.S. Representative for Texas's 28th congressional district and Ranking Member, House Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security, on his official X account
Statement summary
On X, Rep. Henry Cuellar (D-Texas) said he was "very concerned" about the shooting, called for "a thorough and independent investigation," and, citing his role as Ranking Member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security, said he has made DHS transparency a priority.
“I am very concerned about reports of an ICE-involved shooting in Austin, Texas. There needs to be a thorough and independent investigation into this incident. As Ranking Member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security, I have made it a priority to ensure transparency within DHS. I look forward to receiving answers in a timely manner on this situation.”
Cuellar's post on his official X account (@RepCuellar), linking a New York Times report. The post is timestamped 22:56:00 UTC.
Why we used this label
Relative to DHS's decision to have its own component lead the investigation into the shooting, Cuellar calls for an investigation that is independent of DHS rather than accepting DHS's own component leading it, and frames DHS transparency as something he must press for. This tracks the case's existing convention for measured calls against self-investigation (see LULAC's statement, similarly recorded as condemns), even though Cuellar's tone does not criticize ICE's credibility directly.