Texas AG Paxton Asked For $3.3 Million – Got Impeached Instead!

Yes, you read that headline correctly.  Texas AG Ken Paxton has had a multitude of sins overlooked by his Republican pals in TX  over the years.  Including all manner of misdeeds including breaking laws while serving in his current job!   Through it all, if they paid any attention at all Republicans in that state’s Executive Branch and Legislative Branch basically yawned and said “So what?”  Maybe Paxton couldn’t get away with shooting someone (well, a black person maybe, and an undocumented immigrant for sure) like Trump claimed he could do but pretty much anything less than that and they wouldn’t say jack about it.  Much less DO anything.

So, they were aware of all the scandal coming out of the AG’s office.  His being under FBI investigation.  His protecting of a big donor, trading favors, corruption, staff questioning his misdeeds and their being fired in retaliation.  All sorts of stuff.  Still, as I’ve said GOPers in Texas didn’t pay much attention.  It was just noise to them, even when the fired staffers who seem to have qualified for whistleblower status filed a lawsuit.

Now all of a sudden Paxton is sidelined because a report was issued by a committee in the TX legislature looking into him was followed right away by articles of impeachment against him being introduced.  Which passed!  By Texas law that means he can’t serve until after his trial in the Senate.  Assuming the Texas Senate doesn’t have enough votes to convict him.  (More on that later.)

I’d followed the stunning news of the committee report and the swift impeachment proceedings.  However, not being a Texan and with so much other stuff going on I wasn’t up on all the details until during the last hour while watching The 11th Hour With Stephanie Ruhle on MSNBC.  (FYI, I actually wrote this after seeing it last night, but lost track of time and it was just past midnight where I live when I tried to post it – after my internet provider had started the planned maintenance shutdown they’d sent an email about earlier in the day)  She had Tony Plohetski, a reporter with the Austin American Statesman on the show.  Ruhle had the same question I did.  She given what she noted was a partial list of Paxton’s antics which was bad enough as a lead in to talking to the guest she had lined up.  So she asked the obvious question:

What changed?  Why all of a sudden does the TX legislature care?

Plohetski gave a brief and easily understandable account.  Remember that lawsuit I mentioned?  It took a while to wind its way through the courts he said but things got to the point where Paxton agreed to a settlement for the aforementioned $3.3 million.  Well, this is Ken Paxton we’re talking about and he wasn’t about to pay for his misdeeds out of his own pocket.  Nor did he want to shuffle around his department’s considerable budget to pay up.  Instead he went to the Legislature which was in session at the time and asked them for the money, a special appropriation for this particular payoff.  This being Texas, the GOP nationwide being as reluctant to see one of their own punished as lawyers are to see even the sleaziest ambulance chasers among them punished and it only being a few million bucks Paxton had every reason to figure it would be pro-forma – a simple appropriation that would barely get noticed.

Except it didn’t!

Despite what amount to the amount being tip money to these people it seems that ignoring Paxton’s antics was one thing, but paying for them, especially with an earmarked appropriation was something else.  Texas is still a red state and severely gerrymandered but they want to keep it that way and have had to put in extra effort in recent elections.  And 2024 is coming up. Perhaps it was visions of Democrats using the matter in campaign ads.  The point however is that to cover their butts they paid attention for a change to that giant cloud of scandalous accusations and decided it was best to actually take an official and real look at things.  They likely assumed an investigation would provide some political cover, that for all the “smoke” there wasn’t much actual “fire” but they’d have something to wave in everyone’s faces next year.

Because they conducted an actual investigation instead of going through the motions their investigation showed just how corrupt Paxton has been!  Oops.  Worse, for both them and Paxton since he was guilty as hell they actually found stuff, and too much got learned by too many people during the process to sweep it under the rug.  So they’ve voted to impeach him.   Scandalous and even illegal actions, to people in the AG’s office speaking up, to them getting fired to their lawsuit, to the settlement to Paxton asking the Legislature for payoff money.  And them deciding “Let’s make sure this won’t bite US in the a$$ next year before we give Paxton his money.”

Those were the dots Plohetski so neatly connected.  The big (huge) one of all the scandals, the lawsuit from those in the office who spoke up and got fired for doing so, Paxton asking for an appropriation to make the whole thing go away, and the Legislature deciding to cover their butts and make sure “there was no ‘there’ there.”  And, to their dismay learning there was in fact a whole lot of “there” there!

The striking swiftness from the committee’s report being released to the impeachment vote is I think telling.  Paxton is in actual trouble now.

So now Paxton is suspended from his Office of AG.  He probably needs more time with his lawyers anyway.  As far as I know the FBI is still looking at him and now without the trappings of his Office and the resources he can marshal with it to obstruct things he’s a lot more vulnerable.  It’s possible his trial in the TX Senate won’t take place until August or even later.

One thing to keep an eye on, which the segment on MSNBC I referred to is the Trump Factor.  (Hence the title photo) Trump weighed in against passing the articles of impeachment.  And lost!  Plohetski, who surely has as good a handle on things as anyone in TX says at this point it’s unclear what effect Trump’s (continued) support for Paxton might have on things.  Given what Trump is facing this summer, being associated with  Trump might not be something Paxton wants.  The old “with friends like these…” thing.  It will be something to watch however if reading political tea leaves is your thing.

My guess is that some very rich and very powerful people in TX and maybe the national GOP will be leaning hard on Paxton in the next week or two to just resign.  A deal.  The legislature gives him the money to settle the lawsuit in exchange for his resignation and the whole matter going away.  The thought of a trial in which Paxton’s wife who is a TX State Senator makes things worse for the GOP.  She doesn’t have to recuse herself and it seems has no intention of doing so.  Even though it’s possible, if not likely SHE will be called as a witness.  If things get to that point be stocked up on popcorn because she’ll be in a helluva fix.  It could well be she can “stand by her man” and put herself in legal jeopardy!  Hey, as I always say entertainment is where you can find it.

Again, I’m betting Paxton is already under enormous pressure to resign and get all this out of the news.  That pressure will increase daily.  I for one wonder just how obstinate Paxton will be.  From the sidelines my take is that if he makes things easy for them the the Texas GOP will, after the dust settles quietly take care of him.  If other investigations (i.e. the FBI) don’t go anywhere a lucrative partnership in some tony law firm can be arranged.  It’s not like his years in politics and as AG wouldn’t make him valuable.  Hell, in a few years he can even have  his name on the letterhead.  However, if Paxton kicks up a fuss they just might decide to throw him under the bus.  Make an example of him.  That would play well with Independent voters next year.

Stay tuned.  This could get really interesting.

Support the site with a subscription today and see no more ads!

Go Ad-free Now!