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Three years ago, the Republican-led Texas House of Representatives voted to impeach Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton by a vote of 121-23. The 20 charges against Paxton centered around bribery and abuse of office to help a political donor, Nate Paul. The heart of the scandal was first reported by the Texas Tribune in 2021:
Late last year, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton fired multiple senior aides who accused him of accepting a bribe. A court filing obtained by The Texas Tribune reveals for the first time what four of those aides believe Paxton received in exchange for helping a donor with his business affairs.
An updated version of a lawsuit filed by the four whistleblowers claims that Austin real estate developer Nate Paul helped Paxton remodel his house and gave a job to a woman with whom Paxton allegedly had an affair.
In return, the aides allege, Paxton used his office to help Paul’s business interests, investigate Paul’s adversaries and help settle a lawsuit. The claims in the filing provide even more details about what the former aides believe Paxton’s motivations were in what they describe as a “bizarre, obsessive use of power.”
Paxton was suspended from his duties as Attorney General as a result of his impeachment. Of the 86 Republicans in the chamber, 60 voted for Paxton’s impeachment, including Speaker Dade Phelan.
Later in 2023, Paxton was acquitted of the charges by the Texas Senate, with only two of the 19 Republicans in the chamber voting to convict him. As you might have guessed, Donald Trump was to thank for this surprising reversal of Paxton’s fortunes. As the Houston Chronicle reported at the time, “through posts on Truth Social, Trump urged state senators to acquit Paxton of all charges—denouncing the impeachment proceedings as a ‘political persecution’ and a ‘sham.’” After Paxton’s acquittal, Trump bragged about saving Paxton who, it is worth remembering, led an unsuccessful lawsuit to overturn the 2020 election.
Paxton did not stop at just being acquitted. Like Donald Trump after his second impeachment acquittal, Paxton went on a revenge tour. In the three years between his acquittal and defeat of Cornyn in the Republican primary—which, once again, came largely thanks to Donald Trump—Paxton and his allies successfully ran out of office most of the leading Republicans who had supported Paxton’s impeachment, including now former Speaker Dade Phelan.
The message this sends to Republicans is clear: attempt to hold one of your own accountable for blatant corruption, and your political career will be over if it happens to be someone who Donald Trump likes.
Forget, for a moment, about which party controls the U.S. Senate. Let’s instead consider a different question today: does a Republican, who was impeached for blatant corruption and suspended from his duties as Attorney General by over two-thirds of elected Republicans in his state, get to continue rising up the political ladder and punishing anyone who attempts to hold him accountable, all because Donald Trump likes him? Is that the depth to which we have sunk?
Paxton’s opponent in the general election for U.S. Senate is Democrat James Talarico, a clean-cut, mild-mannered seminarian. Talarico is the exact opposite of Paxton’s corrupt and vindictive sleaze, and he is also the only thing standing in the way of Ken Paxton and a seat in the U.S. Senate. Polling shows a very close race.
Please, split a $10 donation between James Talarico for Senate and Bowers Kerbel Media. Forgot about winning or losing the U.S. Senate for a moment. Let’s take action to make sure it is even still possible to hold a Republican who Donald Trump likes accountable for blatant corruption.
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