Reactions after Texas AG Ken Paxton acquitted in impeachment trial
Texas - On Saturday, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton was acquitted on 20 articles of impeachment in a historic trial.
He was reinstated to his duties after being previously suspended from office in May when the GOP-controlled Texas House voted 121-23 to impeach him. The 20 articles included bribery and abuse of public trust.
SUGGESTED: Ken Paxton impeachment trial vote: Texas attorney general acquitted
Many organizations and politicians have issued statements in response to the Paxton being acquitted.
Here are some of the responses below.
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick
Lt. Gov Dan Patrick was the presiding officer of the trial and gave a long statement towards the end. He started off by saying
I have been unusually quiet since the Texas House of Representatives sent the Senate articles of impeachment against the attorney general on very short notice in the final hours of the regular legislative session. The law requires the Senate to receive the articles and have a trial, and once I realized I would be the presiding officer and judge, I thought it was my duty to be quiet on this issue. I have done my very best to do so these last 3 months and these 2 weeks. I spent most of the last 90 days preparing for this trial. I have issued over 240 subpoenas, studied numerous motions, written multiple orders, read hundreds of pages of history, rules, and documents, and worked on every detail of this trial.
To listen to his full statement, watch the video below.
RELATED: Texas Attorney Ken Paxton acquitted on 16 Articles of Impeachment
Senator Paul Bettencourt
"Impeachment is the penultimate act of how to resolve political discourse in American Democracy and in Texas, per our State Constitution. It is important that any such impeachment begins with the foundation of evidence that the jurors, the Texas Senate, can use to make a decision beyond a reasonable doubt to remove any elected official after a vote of the public in an election." Senator Bettencourt stated.
"Due to the fact that the Texas House of Representatives sent the Texas Senate impeachment articles in the last week of the regular session to the Senate on very short notice, my estimation is the members of the Senate alone have spent over 700 days of members’ time developing rules, preparing for trial, listening to evidence, and casting our votes. Unlike Federal impeachments where the US House of Representatives takes evidence from witnesses under oath and allows cross-examination, the Texas House avoided this key step. I agree with Lt. Governor Dan Patrick that the Texas Constitution should be amended to avoid this from happening in the future." He added. "This is the reason why I voted against all pre-trial motions." He remarked.
"By a minimum of 16 votes on 16 articles, Warren Kenneth Paxton Jr. is returned the Attorney General’s Office, the job the voters of the great State of Texas elected him to. I want to commend all my fellow members of the Texas Senate, our presiding officer, Lt. Governor Dan Patrick, all our staffs, and participants. The Texas Senate’s long summer of dedicated service to the citizens of Texas now comes to a close, and may God bless Texas!" Concluded Senator Bettencourt.
Representative Ron Reynolds
"The evidence presented to the Texas Senate and the people of Texas the past two weeks was clear, convincing and damning. AG Paxton committed many crimes, and the Texas Senate has failed to convict him. Paxton's corruption, lies and abuse of power was clearly laid out in the hours of testimony by the whistleblowers and others who we have failed to protect. Unfortunately, I am not surprised by the outcome, but the obscene venality of Paxton's behavior should not have been ignored by the Senators. Our democracy is inherent that our elected officials are to serve in the best the interests of the people; that trust has been violated by AG Paxton and again today when the Senate failed to convict. The people of Texas deserve better!"
Texas Democratic Party
Texas Democratic Party Chairman Gilberto Hinojosa issued the following statement regarding Ken Paxton’s acquittal by the Texas Senate:
"It’s clear that the fix was in from the beginning, and that as long as Republicans control our government, Republican elected officials won’t face consequences for ethical or criminal offenses. In true Texas Republican fashion, Paxton crime organization beneficiary Lt. Governor Dan Patrick and his Republican minions placed the reputation of their friend and the will of his campaign donors above the rule of law. After eight days of damning testimony detailing corruption, lies, and abuse of power, and thousands of pages of grueling evidence – the Texas Senate voted to acquit Ken Paxton of his crimes and allowed him to retain his office.
"Today, one fact was made abundantly clear to the majority of Texans: there is no justice as long as Republicans remain in control of our state. Ken Paxton did nothing short of weaponizing the Attorney General’s office to benefit his wealthy friend that bankrolled his campaign and subsidized his extramarital affair. And now, our criminally indicted Texas Attorney General will continue his reign as Texas’ top criminal without facing any accountability whatsoever.
"This is an enormously sad day in Texas history. From the start of this trial, Ken Paxton (also known affectionately as ‘Dave P’) and his defense hid from the truth – and Dan Patrick protected him every step of the way. Leaving out key witnesses such as Laura Olson, and shielding Paxton himself from testifying, denied the public access to the truth of the extent of Paxton’s crimes. In what American judicial proceeding would a judge be allowed to preside over a court while a $2 million campaign loan from the defendant hung over his head? Republicans don’t respect the rule of law - their morals are based on self-enrichment and codifying the suffering of working people.
"Above all else, Texans deserve better. Paxton is not an honest or honorable man. He has brought great shame to the Attorney General’s office and the state of Texas. But make no mistake – as Paxton takes his "victory" lap to Maine with Tucker Carlson – the Texas Democratic Party is focused on recruiting, resourcing and training for candidates and local leaders so that the likes of Ken Paxton are never elected to represent a single Texan again. The campaign to bring justice to the Attorney General’s office, and hold the leaders of the Paxton crime organization accountable, begins today."
Texans for Lawsuit Reform
"We commend the Texas Legislature for conducting its business on the impeachment of Attorney General Ken Paxton responsibly, openly and according to our constitutional provisions and precedents, after serious questions about Paxton’s actions were raised by his senior staff. This is a confirmation of how Texans resolve even the most divisive issues in a peaceful and deliberate manner."
State Representative Ann Johnson, the Vice Chair of the Texas House General Investigating Committee
"I am profoundly disappointed in today’s partisan decision to acquit Ken Paxton, a man who is unfit for service.
My colleagues in the House of Representatives brought this impeachment action in an overwhelmingly bipartisan vote. I believed firmly in our case then and I believe firmly in our case now. If today’s result were based on evidence, Mr. Paxton would have been convicted. But today’s verdict was based on politics – and once again, politics in Texas has failed us.
Today is the darkest of days for Texas. As I said in my closing remarks to the House, 'If millions of Texans can’t trust us to do the right thing, right here, right now, then what are we here for?'
God help us with the harms that will come to all Texans, now that a dirty politician has been restored to his position as Texas’ top cop."
Senator Borris Miles
"I took my responsibility as a member of the Court of Impeachment very seriously. I believe in law and order, and no one individual is above the law, regardless of how powerful or minimal the elected office may be perceived. The House Managers presented a compelling case beyond a reasonable doubt, showing Attorney General Ken Paxton misused his official power on behalf of Nate Paul. It was clear that multiple divisions of the Attorney General’s Office were pressured to take action and make decisions to benefit Mr. Paul’s businesses and his litigation. The defense would have us believe General Paxton’s actions were not related to the subsequent acts by Mr. Paul, but as was said often during the trial, ‘There are no coincidences in Austin.’ As a result, I voted to impeach General Paxton."
Attorney Rusty Hardin
I want to praise the Texas House of Representatives and their appointed House managers for having the courage to bring this case and to show the people of Texas the multiple instances of misconduct and the attorney general’s abuse of his office.
The career prosecutors and investigators that investigated and presented the evidence to the House deserve equal credit.
When the House voted in a bipartisan way to recommend impeachment to the Senate, they made a non-political decision in a highly charged political atmosphere. They put party above politics and earned our well-deserved respect. The House managers, through their lawyers, presented an overwhelming factual case of wrongdoing and abuse of office. Mr. Paxton, who so loudly claimed he was unaware of the evidence against him, chose not to attend his own trial.
If this were a regular jury trial, Mr. Paxton would have been convicted without hesitation. But this wasn’t a regular jury trial, it was a political trial.
Today’s vote ignores an extraordinary trail of misconduct, all factually proven. The senators chose to ignore all that evidence and return the attorney general to office.
We can’t change the outcome, but we can continue to praise the whistleblowers who had the courage to come forward. They are not only victims, but also heroes. Our heartfelt thanks go out to them and to the House and its board of managers who had the courage to come forward with this evidence at great political and personal risk.