Texas Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton has been impeached for corruption allegations.
The Texas Senate started debating whether Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton should be removed from office due to corruption allegations that have followed him for years on Friday in LOADERROR LOADINGAUSTIN, Texas( AP ). After roughly two weeks of testimony, Texas lawmakers who were in charge of the impeachment made one last appeal to the senatorial jury on Friday. The impeachment managers’ final arguments provided their final opportunity to argue that Paxton is unfit for office due to accusations that he abused his position to defend a democratic donor who was the subject of an FBI investigation. Advertising &# 13,
Democratic state representative Andrew Murr, a member of the Texas House’s republican impeachment managers, said,” If we don’t stop public officials from abusing the powers of their office, then simply no one can.” After being impeached by his own Republicans and widening party divisions in America’s largest red state, Paxton, whose three terms in office have been marred by scandal and legal charges, will face a fundamental test of political durability. A decision might be made later Friday. Paxton would be the first nationwide official to be found guilty of impeachment in Texas in more than a century if he were to do so. A Texas Ranger who warned Paxton he was risking indictment and another accuser who sobbed on the witness stand were both mocked in an enraged and stubborn rebuttal by paxton attorney Tony Buzbee. # 13 of the advertisement
Buzbee portrayed the impeachment as a plot carried out by an ancient guard of GOP rivals, leaning into blatant divisions among Republicans. In the 2022 Republican primary, Paxton was challenged by George P. Bush, the nephew of former President George W. bush, who was punctuated by a blistering closing argument that questioned the morality of FBI agents and railed against Texas’ most illustrious social dynasty. According to Buzbee,” this is a democratic trial.” Paxton, who had only been present for the first few hours of the trial up until Friday, sat at the defense table and drank from a cup.” I would suggest to you that it’s an social witch hunt.” His arrival was hardly missed. Murr remarked,” He hasn’t actually bothered to attend the entire trial.” His wife, state Sen. Angela Paxton, who was required to attend the entire trial but is not permitted to take part in discussions or cast a vote on her husband’s social future, was seated across from him. Some people have watched the people trial, but three of Paxton’s past deputies who reported him to the FBI in 2020 and accused him of breaking the law to assist Austin real estate developer Nate Paul were present in the Senate gallery on Friday. They all gave testimony, including David Maxwell, a previous Texas Ranger. Advertising &# 13,
The defense concentrated on telling senators during closing arguments that there was either no evidence for the accusations or that any evidence didn’t support them beyond a sensible doubt. The House impeachment managers, on the other hand, perused particular documents and played excerpts from the deputies who informed the FBI about Paxton’s whereabouts. Paul was charged in June with fabricating information to banks in order to obtain more than$ 170 million in loans. He entered a not guilty plea. An alleged illicit relationship between Paxton and Laura Olson, a worker for Paul, is the subject of one of the impeachment articles. It claims that Paul’s hiring of Olson was equivalent to offering a bribe. She was called to testify in a extraordinary scene this week, but she eventually chose not to. 30 state senators, the majority of whom are Republicans, will decide the outcome. If all 12 Democrats vote to convict him on one of the 16 articles of impeachment, they would need nine Republicans to join them. This requires a two-thirds majority in the Senate. There will be private discussions. Lt. Gov. Republican If needed, Dan Patrick has stated that the trial will go on all weekend. Advertising &# 13,
Paxton pointed to renewed support from Donald Trump on Thursday as time was running out. Trump branded the impeachment as” terrible” in a post on his social media platform, Truth Social. Trump has long fueled his supporters’ mistrust of the FBI in the face of legal issues. During Friday’s closing arguments, which were televised and intended for an audience outside of the senators in the room, Buzbee leaned into those reservations. Do we think the FBI is constantly vigilant? Or can we all agree that they occasionally make decisions? Buzbee remarked. Like Trump, Paxton is dealing with a number of constitutional issues. He is still being investigated by the federal government for the exact charges that led to his impeachment, and his attempt to rig the 2020 election will result in a bar administrative hearing. State securities fraud charges against Paxton, dating back to 2015, have not yet been tried. In that case, he entered a not guilty plea, but his attorneys have claimed that being removed from office could pave the way for an agreement. Advertising &# 13,
Bleiberg reported from Dallas. At https :// apnews.com / hub / ken-paxtonRelatedTexasimpeachmentken paxton Relative Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton was impeached, and you can read all of AP’s coverage of the case here. Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton of Texas was removed from office on corruption charges.
Texas Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton has been impeached for corruption allegations.
Die Kommission wird ermächtigt, delegierte Rechtsakte gemäß Artikel 264 zu erlassen, die sich auf Folgendes beziehen: On Friday, the Texas Senate began discussing whether or not to take action against Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton due to his alleged corruption which has lingered over him for a period of years. This conversation was kicked off after legislators, supervising the impeachment, gave their last argument to the board of senators after almost two weeks of providing witness accounts. The House impeachment managers utilized their final opportunity to back up their assertion that Paxton is inadequate for office because of accusations he misused his authority to defend a financial contributor who was under scrutiny by the FBI. Republican state Rep. noted that unless we prevent government officials from misusing their authority, it will be impossible to effectively deter such behavior. Andrew Murr, one of the bipartisan group of politically appointed prosecutors in the Texas House, leads the attempt to impeach Paxton. Paxton’s troubling term, marred by accusations of illegal activities and criminal charges, is challenged by the impeachment proceedings initiated by other Republicans. It is likely the decision will be announced on Friday, further stirring up tensions within the staunchly conservative state. Should Paxton be found guilty, he would become the first Texas official detained by impeachment in over a century. In a volatile and combative response, Buzbee, Paxton’s counsel, criticized a variety of characters inside and beyond the state Capitol, making fun of the Texas Ranger who cautioned Paxton he could anticipate being accused and the other accuser whose emotions showed during their testimony. Buzbee suggested that the impeachment is the result of a plan put together by GOP opponents from a previous time. Buzebee highlighted George P. Bush, whose uncle was former President George W. Bush, while delivering a vehement finale, in which the trustworthiness of FBI agents was questioned and the well-known Texas political family was denounced. He summed the trial up with the words, “This is a political trial.”
