Texas AG invites supporters to protest impeachment vote
AUSTIN, Texas — Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Friday urged his supporters to protest at the state Capitol when Republicans in the House of Representatives take up historic impeachment proceedings that threaten to oust him.
The House has set a Saturday vote to consider impeaching Paxton and suspending him from office over allegations of bribery, unfitness for office and abuse of public trust — just some of the accusations that have trailed him for most of his three terms.
Paxton, a 60-year-old Republican, decried the impeachment proceedings as “political theater” that will “inflict lasting damage on the Texas House,” adding to his earlier claims that it’s an effort to disenfranchise the voters who returned him to office in November.
“I want to invite my fellow citizens and friends to peacefully come let their voices be heard at the Capitol tomorrow,” he said at a news conference, without taking any questions. “Exercise your right to petition your government.”
The request echoes former President Donald Trump’s call for people to protest his electoral defeat on Jan. 6, 2021, when a mob violently stormed the U.S. Capitol in Washington. Paxton, who spoke at the rally that preceded that insurrection, called his supporters to the Texas Capitol on a day when the governor is supposed to deliver a Memorial Day address to lawmakers.
If impeached, Paxton would be suspended from office immediately and Republican Gov. Greg Abbott could appoint an interim replacement. The attorney general would be just the third person in the state’s nearly 200year history to be impeached and the first statewide officer since former Gov. James “Pa” Ferguson in 1917.
The House will begin considering a resolution calling for Paxton’s impeachment at
1 p.m. Saturday, according to a statement released Friday by the House Committee on General Investigating.
The GOP-led committee spent months quietly investigating Paxton and recommended his impeachment Thursday on 20 articles. Paxton has said the charges are based on “hearsay and gossip, parroting long-disproven claims.”
Prominent conservatives had been notably quiet on Paxton, but some began to rally around him Friday. The chairman of the state Republican Party, Matt Rinaldi, criticized the process as a “sham” and urged the GOP-controlled Senate to acquit Paxton if he stands trial in that chamber.
“It is based on allegations already litigated by voters, led by a liberal speaker trying to undermine his conservative adversaries,” Rinaldi said, echoing Paxton’s criticism of Republican House Speaker Dade Phelan. He said the Senate will have to “restore sanity and reason” by acquitting Paxton.
The process in the House will start with opening statements Saturday, followed by four hours of debate, closing statements and then a vote, according to a memo from the committee.
Paxton faces grim math in the chamber, where he served five terms before becoming a state senator.
It’s unclear how many supporters he may have in the House, but only a simple majority is needed to impeach. That means just a small fraction of the 85 Republican members would need to vote against Paxton if all 64 Democrats do. Final removal would require two-thirds support in the Senate, where Paxton’s wife’s, Angela, is a member.
Paxton has been under FBI investigation for years over accusations that he used his office to help a donor. He was separately indicted on securities fraud charges in 2015 but has yet to stand trial.