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Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton's impeachment trial commenced on September 5, 2023. The senators will vote for 16 out of the 20 articles adopted by the House of Representatives, first suspended on May 27, 2023.
The 20 articles include abuse of public trust, unfitness for office, and bribery, among other allegations that are grounds for impeachment. As per CNN, Paxton's lawyers stated that the Republican politician wouldn't be testifying before the Senate.
Ken Paxton's wife, Angela Paxton, will sit at the court as she represents District 8 in the Texas Senate, but she is barred from voting. The acting judge for the impeachment trial is Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who is a Republican.
Details about the Ken Paxton Impeachment Trial
Texas politician Ken Paxton's impeachment trial started on Tuesday. He was elected Attorney General (AG) in 2014 and then reelected in 2018 and 2022.
The Republican lawyer has been indicted on fraud charges and has faced a federal investigation because of former employees who testified against Paxton for bribery and abuse of power. The staff members were soon fired, and they sued the office for wrongful termination under the state's whistleblower law.
The complaints started when Ken's working relationship with a donor and friend, Nate Paul, a real estate agent, was investigated. The 4000 pages of evidence submitted by the House impeachment managers showed that the attorney general pressurized his top aides to help Paul in his endeavors, as per CNN.
Accusations against Ken Paxton
The Texas AG is accused of accepting $20,000 worth of renovation materials from Paul for his $1 million estate. The whistleblowers also disclosed that Nate Paul arranged a mistress for Ken Paxton who used the alias Dave. P to meet with both the mistress and Paul.
The four whistleblowers who sued Paxton's office were given $3.3 million in settlements after the February trial. Ken Paxton asked the state's lawmakers to provide the money for the settlement, which ultimately resulted in his suspension. The Texas House of Representatives voted 121-23 in May to set the impeachment in motion.
How would the trial proceed?
Paxton's lawyers have asked the Senate to dismiss the 20 articles submitted by the House of Representatives. If his fellow Republican ally and the trial judge, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, agree to this term, the senators would have to vote for individual articles. Patrick had previously loaned $125,000 to Ken's reelection campaign, as reported by AP News.
As per Associated Press, Republican senators rejected multiple requests from Paxton's lawyers to dismiss many of the 20 impeachment charges.
As per NBC News, two-thirds of the total senators will have to vote yes for an article to get a conviction; if the number of votes is short, then it's an acquittal. A total of 21 senators need to say yes for an article to pass.
The Senate has a majority of Republicans in the voting booth, which means for Paxton to get convicted, 12 Senate Democrats would have to vote against him. They would also need at least nine from the 19 Republican senators present to also vote yes.
The Republican Senate has worked together with Paxton throughout his three-time term at the Texas Attorney General's Office and shares his far-right values. Both sides—the impeachment managers and Paxton's lawyers—will get a total of 24 hours to present their evidence to the court, which can spread throughout several days.
The closing arguments, lasting 60 minutes, would first be made by Ken Paxton's lawyers and then the impeachment managers. Paxton's legal team includes Tony Buzbee and Dan Cogdell. The impeachment managers are represented by Rusty Hardin and Dick DeGuerin.
Ken Paxton declared that the impeachment trial is a "politically motivated sham" and denied all wrongdoings, as per CNN. Donald Trump also said he supports Paxton and called out the RINOs (Republicans in name only) for "election interference" and Ken's suspension.
