Ken Paxton’s deputy demands back pay for months the attorney general was suspended
Comptroller Glenn Hegar said he disagreed with Paxton’s interpretation of the law and suggested he seek a ruling from the Texas Supreme Court. Full Story
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![Attorney General Ken Paxton sits between his attorneys Tony Buzbee, left, and Mitch Little, right, during final prosecutor arguments as both sides have rested in the suspended Attorney General's impeachment trial September 15, 2023 in Austin.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
“We are not going away”: Paxton whistleblowers vow to continue legal fight in court
On Monday, the former state employees argued that Paxton has failed to uphold key parts of the settlement agreement, including a $3.3 million payment and a promise to apologize. Full Story
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![From left: Ryan Vassar, Mark Penley and Blake Brickman, whistleblowers in the impeachment trial of Attorney General Ken Paxton, speak at a press conference in the state Capitol on Monday, Sept. 25, 2023. A fourth whistleblower, David Maxwell, was not present but in agreement with remarks.]()
Credit: John Jordan/The Texas Tribune -
A unique Texas legal rule lets the attorney general’s office supersede some judges’ orders
Lawyers criticize a provision they say erodes the separation of powers between Texas’ executive branch and its courts. It’s been used repeatedly this year as Texans try to block new state laws from going into effect. Full Story
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![Amanda Zurawski, middle, addresses the press following the first day of testimony for Zurawski v. State of Texas outside the Travis County Civil and Family Courts Facility in Austin on July 19, 2023.]()
Credit: Joe Timmerman/The Texas Tribune -
Ken Paxton acquittal could quiet future whistleblowers, experts say
The Texas attorney general was exonerated by the state Senate, but a lawsuit from former employees still lingers. Full Story
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![Several of the whistleblowers from the attorney general's office sit in the gallery anticipating the verdicts at the Ken Paxton impeachment trial in the Texas Senate on Sept. 16, 2023. From left, front row: David Maxwell, Margaret Moore, Ryan Vassar, unknown; back row: Blake Brickman and T.J. Turner.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Dan Patrick defends taking $3 million from pro-Paxton group ahead of trial
The lieutenant governor said that he took just as much from “the other side,” including donors aligned with Texans for Lawsuit Reform, which Paxton has labeled a political enemy. Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick recaps the 88th Legislative Session with Sherry Sylvester, Distinguished Senior Fellow at the Texas Public Policy Foundation, at TPPF Headquarters in downtown Austin, on May 30, 2023.]()
Credit: Eddie Gaspar/The Texas Tribune -
“Get ready”: Ken Paxton promises retribution in interview blitz after impeachment trial
The radio interviews came the morning after Paxton gave his first post-acquittal interview to Tucker Carlson, telling the former Fox News host he was “re-energized” after the acquittal. Full Story
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![Attorney General Ken Paxton at a border security briefing at the Texas DPS airport hangar in Edinburg on Jan. 28, 2022. Paxton's office coordinated the event with 12 attorneys general from around the U.S. to dicuss legal action taken against the Biden administration about immigration policy.]()
Credit: Michael Gonzalez for The Texas Tribune -
The many times Ken Paxton refused to defend Texas agencies in court
The Texas attorney general said he’s “back to work” after his recent acquittal, but his office has repeatedly declined to fulfill one of its key duties: representing state agencies who are being sued. Full Story
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Credit: Julius Shieh/The Texas Tribune -
Ken Paxton blasts fellow Republicans and floats Cornyn challenge in post-impeachment interview
In his first remarks since being acquitted on 16 articles of impeachment, the suspended Texas attorney general blamed Democrats while also taking aim at a number of high-profile Republicans. Full Story
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![Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton attends a campaign event during a Bulverde Spring Branch Conservative Republicans meeting on May 16, 2022, in Bulverde. Paxton criticized President Joe Biden’s immigration policies, discussed voter fraud in Texas and praised the leaked SCOTUS draft opinion that would overturn Roe v. Wade.]()
Credit: Kaylee Greenlee Beal for The Texas Tribune -
GOP senators, open to Paxton conviction, flipped when they realized they were still short the votes
“I feel there were six senators who were ready to be the 21st vote,” said Sen. Nathan Johnson, D-Dallas. “But they didn’t want to be the 20th vote.” Full Story
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![Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, center, bows his head in prayer as state Sen. Brian Birdwell, R-Granbury, leads the Senate in prayer during the fifth day of suspended Attorney General Ken Paxton’s impeachment trial in the Senate chamber at the Texas State Capitol in Austin on Monday, Sept. 11, 2023. Brian Birdwell was in the Pentagon when American Airlines flight 77 struck.]()
Credit: Juan Figueroa/Pool via The Dallas Morning News -
An emboldened Ken Paxton returns to a battered attorney general’s office
The impeachment proceedings, and the events that precipitated them, have left the Texas Office of the Attorney General in turmoil. Can Paxton steady the ship of an institution vital to the conservative cause? Full Story
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![Opening Day action of the 88th Texas Legislature at the Texas Capitol showing Attorney General Ken Paxton conferring with Gov. Greg Abbott outside the Senate chamber before his swearing in ceremony in Jan. 10, 2023.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for the Texas Tribune -
Ken Paxton’s prosecutors stumbled at times. But did it matter in the GOP-dominated Senate?
The House impeachment managers faced a high bar: convincing enough Republican senators to vote against their own political self-interest. Full Story
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![House impeachment manager Rep. David Spiller, R-Jacksboro, center, listens as votes are votes cast during Attorney General Ken Paxton's impeachment trial on Sept. 16, 2023.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Ken Paxton emerges victorious from yet another career scandal
It marked a screaming milestone in a two-decade political career that has seen Paxton harness the state’s increasingly conservative politics — and later the rise of Donald Trump — to stay in power longer than his vulnerabilities would suggest. Full Story
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![Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton looks up at the gallery during the first day of his impeachment trial in the Texas Senate chambers at the Texas State Capitol in Austin on Tuesday, Sept. 5, 2023.]()
Credit: Juan Figueroa/Pool via The Dallas Morning News -
Ken Paxton’s impeachment trial escalates Texas Republican civil war
Paxton’s far-right supporters doubled down on their promises for swift retribution against fellow Republicans who supported his removal from office. Full Story
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![Streetlights illuminate the Texas Capitol through early morning fog on the ninth day of suspended Attorney General Ken Paxton’s impeachment trial in Austin on Sept. 15, 2023.]()
Credit: Julius Shieh/The Texas Tribune -
Senate Republicans say House managers failed to meet high burden of proof
Democrats, however, said their GOP colleagues “caved” to outside pressure in voting to acquit and return Ken Paxton to his job as attorney general. Full Story
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![State senators file into the Texas Senate to cast their votes on the articles of impeachment on Sept. 16, 2023.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Ken Paxton was acquitted. See how each Senator voted.
After spending two weeks listening to both sides make their case, Texas Senators voted to acquit Paxton on all 16 articles of impeachment. Because of this vote, Paxton will remain in office. Full Story
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![A court bailiff collects votes from senators, skipping Angela Paxton, on the tenth day of suspended Attorney General Ken Paxton’s impeachment trial at the Texas Capitol in Austin on Sept. 16, 2023.]()
Credit: Julius Shieh/The Texas Tribune -
After winning impeachment fight, Paxton still faces felony fraud case and an FBI investigation
The attorney general’s long-simmering securities fraud case appears closer to resolution, while the FBI has probed the same allegations that played a major role in his impeachment. Full Story
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![Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton leaves the courtroom after appearing for the eight-year-old felony securities fraud case against him at Harris County Courthouse on Aug. 3, 2023, in Houston.]()
Credit: Reginald Mathalone/NurPhoto via REUTERS -
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton acquitted on all 16 articles of impeachment
Only two of 19 Republican Senators voted in favor of convicting for any article — a stark contrast to the more than 70% of House Republicans who impeached the attorney general in May. Full Story
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![Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, center, sits between defense attorneys Tony Buzbee, left, and Mitch Little, right, before starting the ninth day of his impeachment trial in the Senate chamber at the Texas Capitol on Sept. 15, 2023.]()
Credit: Sam Owens/Pool via San Antonio Express-News -
PAXTON ACQUITTED ON MOST CHARGES; SENATORS STILL VOTING
Other public officials have begun weighing in after the attorney general was returned to his post as the state’s top lawyer. Full Story
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![Sen. Angela Paxton, R-McKinney, hugs defense attorney Tony Buzbee after the impeachment trial of Attorney General Ken Paxton in the Texas Senate on September 16, 2023.]()
Credit: Bob Daemmrich for The Texas Tribune -
Paxton defense calls charges “foolishness,” House argues AG “betrayed us” in closing impeachment arguments
Senators begin deliberating in private after defense lawyers and impeachment managers make impassioned pleas after two weeks of trial. Full Story
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![Senators are led onto the Senate Floor at the beginning of the ninth day of suspended Attorney General Ken Paxton’s impeachment trial at the state capitol in Austin, Texas, on Sept. 15, 2023.]()
Credit: Julius Shieh/The Texas Tribune -
Senators leave Capitol without a verdict in Ken Paxton’s impeachment trial
Deliberations are expected to resume at 9 a.m. Saturday. Paxton is accused of misusing his office to help a friend and donor who was under federal investigation. Full Story
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![Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, left, talks with his defense attorney Tony Buzbee before starting the ninth day of his impeachment trial in the Senate Chamber at the Texas Capitol on Friday, Sept. 15, 2023, in Austin, Texas.]()
Credit: Sam Owens/Pool via San Antonio Express-News