AUSTIN, Texas — Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton’s impeachment raises questions about why it took Republicans so long to hold one of their own accountable. It’s also a guidepost on the road to a tumultuous 2024 election cycle.
The bribery allegations against Paxton are not new. They were rehashed after Paxton tried to stick taxpayers with a $3.3 million tab for his settlement with whistleblowers in his office who in 2020 sounded alarm bells about Paxton’s dealings with Austin real estate developer Nate Paul.
In investigating whether it was prudent to pay Paxton’s legal tab, a House ethics panel examined the Paul case and other aspects of Paxton’s controversial career. On Saturday, he was impeached on 20 articles of wrongdoing, and now his fate will be determined by a trial in the Senate, where it will take a two-thirds vote to remove him from office.
The frenzied effort to impeach Paxton before the session ends Monday came after months of investigation. But the allegations against Paxton have been known for years, including by House Republicans who led the impeachment effort.
In fact, Paxton’s entire tenure as attorney general has been marred by legal troubles. They date back to his primary campaign in 2014, when former state Rep. Dan Branch of Dallas tried to rally support for his candidacy by pointing out allegations that Paxton committed securities fraud.
Those allegations didn’t move primary voters, and Paxton defeated Branch and won the general election. The next year he was indicted on securities fraud charges and that case is still stuck in the court system.
Few Republicans, particularly in the Legislature, spoke against Paxton. He was reelected in 2018 while under indictment.
The Paul allegations broke in 2020, as did news that Paxton was under FBI investigation. That’s when Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said the allegations were concerning. But there was no action against Paxton in the 2021 legislative session.
In 2022, Paxton won reelection again, crushing Land Commissioner George P. Bush in the GOP primary runoff following a primary that also featured former state Supreme Court Justice Eva Guzman and former U.S. Rep. Louie Gohmert of Tyler. His victory came after Sen. John Cornyn, a leading Texas Republican, called the allegations against him an “embarrassment.”
Paxton seemed invincible, largely because of his support from hard-right Republicans and former President Donald Trump.
Even House members who didn’t support Paxton’s impeachment called the allegations against him “alarming” and “stunning” during the debate on the resolution to impeach.
Why did Republicans finally move to hold Paxton accountable for alleged misdeeds? One of the stated reasons is that he asked the Legislature to pay his legal bill, which resulted in a full-blown probe.
Still, it’s hard to imagine that the GOP House members and Speaker Dade Phelan, R-Beaumont, would go after Paxton without getting input from other powerful Republicans. It’s hard to believe that Abbott and Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick didn’t know impeachment winds were blowing.
Paxton had proved to be a made man in Texas politics, so trying to remove him from office would seemingly require a nod of approval from more than a few House Ethics Committee members. Some powerful Republicans had to give the OK. Right?
It is important to note that members of the ethics panel do their work in secret. Props to them for keeping the matter quiet until their report was ready.
At some point, Phelan and his lieutenants determined that it was time to oust the attorney general, who with all his legal problems had become a critic of the House and an embarrassment to those Republicans who believe the party can do better.
There’s also polling data that shows while Paxton is successful in getting elected, he’s not as well known among voters as Abbott and other leaders. Do the majority of Texans really care what happens to Paxton?
Phelan, who has been a frequent target of Patrick and some conservative voices outside the Capitol, has shown a toughness in his second legislative session as leader of the House. He’s standing up to Patrick on several key issues, including how to implement significant property tax reduction. His members are also against school voucher-like proposals backed by Patrick and Abbott.
With House members behind him, Phelan is showing Abbott and Patrick that their leadership triumvirate is the Big 3, not the Big 2 and a half.
It’s also possible, even in politics circa 2023, that GOP House members believe removing Paxton is the right thing to do.
The Senate could acquit Paxton, and his indictment will likely be an issue for GOP House members running for reelection in 2024. The attorney general is already appealing to voters who supported him to show their displeasure with the House. Hard-right Republicans are grumbling that Phelan didn’t approve enough of their agenda items, though it appears that they got most of what they wanted.
On Saturday, Trump and Sen. Ted Cruz criticized House Republicans for impeaching Paxton, signaling that conservatives outside of the Legislature are split on how the process unfolded.
According to Rep. Charlie Geren, R-Fort Worth, Paxton called lawmakers on Saturday and threatened them with political retribution if they voted to impeach him. The vote to impeach Paxton was overwhelming, with 121 out of 149 members backing the resolution.
Expect a major conflict within the Texas GOP that will be played out in 2024, when Republicans will also pick from a presidential field that includes Trump and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
By then Paxton could be playing the role of martyr, instead of attorney general.