Thread: House Dem files for bankruptcy

By: John Bresnahan
February 3, 2011 05:07 PM EST

Rep. Ruben Hinojosa, an eight-term Democrat from Texas, filed for personal bankruptcy in December after a major bank won a $2.6 million arbitration award against him over a loan he made to a family meat company, according to documents filed in federal bankruptcy court.

Companies affiliated with Hinojosa have thousands of dollars in state tax liens against them, these documents show. In the court filings, Hinojosa listed assets valued atmore than $1.4 million and debt in excess of $2.9 million, including the arbitration award.

Bankruptcy filings for sitting members of Congress are relatively rare, as most lawmakers are wealthier than U.S. citizens of average earnings, but Hinojosa’s personal financial problems offer a window into the complicated financial entanglements that can cause embarrassing problems for an elected official. Congressional experts couldn’t name a recent public report of bankruptcy by a House member or senator.

The bankruptcy filing had not been previously reported until POLITICO posted a story late Thursday.

Hinojosa’s annual financial-disclosure forms, on file with the House clerk, demonstrate that Hinojosa would be able to clear a personal loan to a company called Hinojosa Development valued at $250,000 to $500,000. Hinojosa has declared this liability since he first was elected to Congress in 1996.

But the arbitration award against Hinojosa was for a different company, H&H Foods, also known as H&H Meat Products. That company makes Mexican foods and has been one of the largest employers in Texas’s 15th District, which Hinojosa represents. H&H filed for bankruptcy in 2008, according to a local newspaper.

Hinojosa said he has no “managerial control or oversight over H&H,â€

That company makes Mexican foods and has been one of the largest employers in Texas’s 15th District, which Hinojosa represents. H&H filed for bankruptcy in 2008, according to a local newspaper.

Gee, I wonder if they hired illegal aliens? It's clear to see why he supports illegal immigration, huh?