As at the federal level, the impeachment process takes place in several stages: in May, the Republican-dominated Texas House of Representatives voted 121 to 23, with two abstentions, to impeach Paxton on 20 counts related to corruption, obstruction of justice, embezzlement. of public funds and lack of aptitude for public office. Paxton then had to resign from his position.
Since last week, the Senate has been deciding the fate of the state’s top lawyer and a possible ban on Paxton holding elected office in the future. According to the indictment, he allegedly pressured his employees to protect a friend and donor from legal proceedings. In return, the financier of one of the Attorney General’s extramarital affairs allegedly provided a job and paid for work at Paxton’s home.
Republicans in majority
Republicans have a 19-12 majority in the Senate, which serves as the jury. The Texas Constitution requires a two-thirds majority, or at least 21 votes, to convict and remove Paxton from office. This means that if all Democrats vote against Paxton, they will need nine more Republicans to join them. Paxton’s wife, Angela Paxton, is also a member of the Senate – but has no say in the verdict.
AP/Eric Gay Angela Paxton is needing to hear details about her husband’s extramarital affair these days
Consequences of an affair
However, she has participated in the entire trial thus far, including when a former employee of her husband’s described his case in detail: how the relationship put pressure on employees, how she urged Paxton to consider the risks, and how she asked him to tell your wife about it to tell about the affair. “I told General Paxton bluntly that it’s none of my business who he sleeps with, but if things affect the office and the work of the state, it’s my business,” she said.
Real estate entrepreneur Nate Paul, who also hired the woman in 2020, helped maintain Paxton’s connection. Paul also paid for construction work on one of Paxton’s homes. In return, the attorney general used his office to assist the businessman in FBI investigations and legal disputes.
Incriminated whistleblowers
Several Paxton employees ended up turning to the FBI as whistleblowers on suspicion of abuse of power and bribery. They were fired and later took legal action against their dismissal. In February 2023, the lawsuit ended with a settlement in which Texas was required to pay 3.3 million dollars (3.1 million euros) to the plaintiffs. This tax payment ended up triggering the impeachment process.
IMAGO/ZUMA Wire/Jay Janner Tried and tested on legal troubles and close allies: Paxton, Trump
Paxton is somewhat of a veteran of the investigations against him, but they have so far had no impact on his political career: in 2015, a year after he was appointed Texas attorney general, he was indicted on financial fraud charges. Although the process is not yet complete, he was confirmed in office in 2018 and 2022. The reaction from the Republican ranks to his legal problems was quite muted for a long time, but that changed – in part – during the impeachment process.
Trump camp remains loyal
Trump and his group, which also supported Paxton when he ran for re-election in 2022 against George P. Bush, son of former Florida governor Jeb Bush, still support him. They describe the impeachment campaign as an attempt to undermine the results of this election. Shortly after the prosecutor was fired, Trump posted the phrase “Freedom for Ken Paxton” on his social media platform, calling the effort “election interference” by “far-left Democrats,” criminals, and insufficiently loyal Republicans.
Matt Schlapp, president of the American Conservative Union, called Republicans opposing Paxton “weak” and wrote on social media that what they were doing was “horrible.” Steve Bannon, Trump’s infamous former advisor, said on his “War Room” podcast: “We want the entire Make America Great Again movement to be aware that what’s happening in Texas is not just about Texas.” . Texas to Trumpism and threatened that any senator who supported the trial against Paxton would be ridiculed.
AP/Jose Luis Magana Paxton also played a significant role in the storming of the Capitol
Paxton himself called the case against him a “politically motivated fraud.” He claimed that his office sued the administration of US President Joe Biden almost 50 times to reverse family, immigration, tax and environmental policies. Paxton was also a speaker at the rally that led to the storming of the Capitol in January 2021. After the shameful spectacle, Paxton stated that Trump supporters were not involved in any way.
“Republicans once believed in the rule of law.”
On the other side of Paxton’s fight are the state’s most traditional conservatives, including Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan and former governor Rick Perry. “Republicans once believed in the rule of law,” Perry wrote in an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal (“WSJ”) last month. “That’s why it’s shocking to see some Republicans working — through a coordinated effort in texts, emails and social media posts — to delegitimize the impeachment of Attorney General Ken Paxton.”
Andrew Moore, a Republican who voted to impeach Paxton in the House of Representatives, said: “Paxton has been entrusted with great power. “Unfortunately, he revealed his true character rather than rising to the occasion, and as the overwhelming evidence will show, he is not fit to be Attorney General of the State of Texas.” No matter what the Senate decides in the coming days, the outcome will likely open divisions within the Republican Party even further.