The Senate, which is conducting the trial, published the exhibits Thursday night. House impeachment managers say Paxton abused his office to help friend and political donor Nate Paul.
Zach Despart
Zach Despart is an enterprise and investigative reporter focusing on state government. His work on a team investigating the flawed police response to the Uvalde school shooting was awarded the 2024 Collier Prize and was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in explanatory reporting. He led the Tribune’s effort to become the first news organization to map the fragmented 50-mile Texas border wall, a project that also found the state struggled with holdout landowners along the route. After it was published, the Legislature stopped funding the wall. He previously covered Harris County for the Houston Chronicle, where he reported on corruption, elections, disaster preparedness and the region’s recovery from Hurricane Harvey. His investigation on how Texas diverted Harvey aid away from areas most at risk for storms sparked a federal investigation. An upstate New York native, he received his bachelor’s degree in political science and film from the University of Vermont.
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Ken Paxton Impeachment
Ken Paxton’s former personal assistant and “second son” a star witness in impeachment probe
Drew Wicker testified that he ferried documents to Nate Paul on behalf of his boss and witnessed conversations that suggested Paul was paying for the attorney general’s home renovations.
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Ken Paxton Impeachment
New accusations: Ken Paxton used burner phone, secret email account, fake Uber name to hide ties to Nate Paul
After Paxton’s lawyers sought to dismiss articles of impeachment as unsubstantiated, House managers responded by accusing the suspended attorney general of going to great lengths to cover up his relationship to the real estate investor.
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Ken Paxton Impeachment
Federal grand jury reportedly calls witnesses related to Ken Paxton
The Austin American-Statesman reported that the grand jury has been convened in San Antonio. The identities of the witnesses and the focus of the inquiry remain unclear.
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Politics
Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin resigns to run for Texas House
McLaughlin, who led the small South Texas community through the 2022 mass shooting at Robb Elementary School, was first elected in 2014.
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Ken Paxton Impeachment
Nate Paul charged with 8 felony counts of making false statements to financial institutions
The Austin real estate investor was a central figure in allegations that led the Texas House to impeach Attorney General Ken Paxton last month. One of the charges against Paul has ties the impeachment allegations.
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Texas Legislature 2023
Texas to deploy buoys to deter Rio Grande crossings, Abbott announces
The governor revealed plans for a floating river barrier at a Capitol signing ceremony for six new laws related to border security. The first 1,000-foot section will be set up near Eagle Pass.
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Texas Legislature 2023
With no deal on property taxes in sight, Abbott hints at multiple special sessions
The governor stands behind his support of the Texas House tax plan despite Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick’s insistence that the Senate has a better deal for homeowners.
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Texas Legislature 2023
Tension over property taxes produces rare public clash between Dan Patrick, Greg Abbott
Always happy to castigate the Texas House, Patrick breaks form to criticize the governor as misinformed and unsympathetic toward homeowners.
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Ken Paxton Impeachment
Abbott taps John Scott, former Texas secretary of state, as interim attorney general
Scott, a former deputy attorney general, will run the agency because Ken Paxton has been suspended from office until his impeachment trial before the Texas Senate.
