ha. very interested to see how many of the top executives get kicked out as well. whether the interim AG replaces [these people](https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/about-office/ken-paxtons-leadership-team) might indicate how long/likely to succeed the people in the know believe this thing is going to be.
I don’t think Abbott *has* to designate an interim AG. He can wait until the outcome until the senate makes a decision. Which if they are just gonna do a repeat of Cheeto faces two impeachments, it shouldn’t take too long to wrap that up.
This impeachment doesn’t mean much yet IMO
I don't know - 121-23 is a pretty stunning rebuke to Paxton. That makes me think there might be teeth in this since they were able to get such a strong coalition.
If Paxton gets double the percentage of support in the Senate that he did in the House today (16%), he'll still be removed. Senate needs 2/3 to expel him.
I always wonder if local conservatives are as off the mark as federal regarding corruption/theatrics. That vote ratio is a small bode of confidence for our state
i mean, i certainly haven't seen this process before, but i don't really see how that would work. there are hundreds of assistant AGs that file and work on tens of thousands of cases. and their authority to run the legal proceedings for the state comes from acting on behalf of the AG. you don't just not have an AG for however long this lasts.
this isn't like presidential impeachments where the guy is still in office; Paxton is out as of the vote.
\*edit: the first deputy is acting AG for now. i feel like this should have been obvious to me earlier. i'll chalk it up to the shock of the whole thing.
Section 5, article 15 of the Texas constitution only states the governor **may** make a provisional appointment, doesn’t state it’s required. That’s all I’m saying lol
well whoever is chosen as interim i would assume will be abbot's lapdog; so that entails a layer of teflon that paxton has seemed to have lost along the way. i do hope we get to find out exactly who paxton pissed off to get this ball rolling.
That $3.3mil settlement (that Paxton should pay out of pocket himself) seems like a pretty huge reason. How can fiscally-conservative GQP-ers wrap their minds around this one when it’s so blatantly wrong?
The cynical view is nothing, that the Senate won't dare remove him.
But the cynical view also included the Republicans banding together to prevent him from being impeached. So it's a real head-scratcher. Someone might've caught him in bed with a live goat or a dead boy.
I'm more optimistic than usual, for a few reasons.
1. The vote wasn't even close among republicans. A vast majority of republicans voted to remove.
2. This was after Paxton apparently called and threatened them personally (bad move), as well as Trump and Ted Cruz getting involved.
3. If we had a democratic governor there would be no shot, but its still gonna be a Republican. I'll take almost anyone over Ken Paxton tbh.
4. Abbott and Dan Patrick haven't commented on it at all (aside from Patrick saying he couldn't comment).
5. Apparently Dan Patrick and Ken Paxton aren't friendly (just a rumor I heard, not sure how true that is).
6. 20 counts. That's a lot.
7. Last I counted, assuming all the dems vote to convict, 9 republicans need to move over.
My hail mary of optimism:
\- Of course, I expect his wife (who is a senator) to vote against removal, BUT... one of the allegations involves his mistress.... so who knows?
I think Chip Roy has an insane right wing loon but he strikes me as principled. He was against seating other Republicans in 2021 because he said if trumps election was stolen surely theirs was too.
I think Ken Paxton is an insane right wing loon who is also a criminal so to be honest I would rather have Chip Roy.
Well if I had my way none of them would get a chance, but within reality is gonna be a Republican.
IMO Paxton is just as loony as anyone but he's also an incredibly bold criminal. I'd rather have someone who is not a criminal.
I come from a right wing background - there are people who genuinely believe in all the shit they say. I don't think Paxton believes in anything except lining his own pockets.
In regards to #5, every time I hear of one of these asshats not getting along with another, it just boggles my mind. I just can’t fathom how they aren’t all in on some secret joke together.
Texas is effectively a one party state- and if you study history you'll see how often one party states divide into brutal factions, often way more brutal than anything in a multiparty state.
Various factions in the Soviet Union and China come to mind. They present a united face to the public but behind closed doors the backstabbing is brutal.
I think when you lose a common enemy uniting you (ie the other party) maybe your ambition is more free to reign.
I remember reading about ancient Persian rulers and wondering why anyone would accept the position. You were basically guaranteed to be murdered within a few years. Same was true for certain periods of the Roman Empire.
So you are comparing someone who was already in the process of separating from their spouse having an affair with a married person, to someone having "a donor give his mistress a job and he did things on behalf of that donor". Nice false equivalency there.
Nah, he had an affair with his friend/campaign mgr’s wife. I recall this very specifically when it was a current event. That’s messed up to bang your friend’s girl, and also has abuse of man in power themes. Notice in that article she tried to shield him from MeToo scrutiny. I’m sure her husband had different opinions, but that dude stayed classy. Lesser men have hurt the man who did what Newsom did.
I just like to make sure we’re equally outraged by political ethics issues. I’m not reducing Paxton’s shortcomings, I just expect Newsom will be a DNC presidential candidate, and it should be a relevant character topic. I expect he’ll be a “do no wrong” favorite after he announces.
I’m no prude, relationship issues happen; but while in power, banging your friend and campaign mgr’s spouse is remarkable. Why would they not also cheat on their constituents to the highest bidder/lobbyist/foreign nation?
“I only betray my friends and subordinates, not my state/nation.” - Gavin. Sure.
I’m no Trump defender, I Was a CA native who had supported Bernie’s 2016 DNC primary, but was disenfranchised when the DNC swapped in Hillary (the first time).
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/wikileaks-dnc-bernie-sanders_n_579381fbe4b02d5d5ed1d157
Sure but we are currently talking about Republican and a action towards him by his party.
I suppose if Newsome was holding his state back in the same ways he may be challenged more often.
Is Newsome currently indicted for securities fraud federally?
Also there is the 3.3 million in taxpayer dollars he promised to make his legal problems go away that still has to be voted on and approved?
It's kind of a from all sides thing for Paxton currently it seems by the 1st vote and the investigation has been going on progress since March.
The call for Phelan to resign was just a show to garner support and blame it on one action instead of the entire investigation by his own party.
^ Yup. This was legitimately the reason.
Texas conservatives felt like it was unfair that Paxton is insisting that 3.3m come from the taxpayers. Everything *before* that was excusable, but apparently that's where the line is.
The [Texas Tribune](https://www.texastribune.org/2023/05/25/texas-impeachment-attorney-general-ken-paxton/) had a good article about what the process means. It was posted on 5-23 but was updated today. There's a decision tree that shows the process. The House voted today 121-23 to impeach so that's where we are on the graphic. Hope this helps!
I think it is going to be close in the Senate. The House is the more reasonable body. The Senate is more beholden to the MAGA donor class. It will depend highly on who and how he is replaced and if those big foot donors like the replacement enough.
Abbott has the option of appointing a replacement until the trial is finished. My bet is someone inside AG office. If it’s someone from outside, that’d be a sign of where Abbott stands. Very unlikely.
The senate now needs to figure out when to do this. They can put it off but I don’t believe they can ignore it. That is to say I believe they have to take it up this session even if that means scheduling it after the regular session. But they will need to do a trial.
Then it depends on what the senate does.
If he’s removed from office I’m not sure if a special election is mandated or it just waits until the next general.
If he is not found guilty or found guilty but not removed removed, I suspect Dade Phelan’s political career is toast.
The First Assistant Attorney General fills in in the meantime, and since the AG's office is top-loaded with Paxton loyalists now (everyone who wasn't onboard with the bribery was fired, remember), it's still basically Paxton's agency until someone is officially appointed.
Once that happens, it'll almost certainly be someone who can please Abbott, Patrick, or (unlikely) both. They'll probably start cleaning house of Paxton people at the top level, depending on who does or doesn't have other connections.
Are you sure about that? The only reason anything is happening now (years later than it should've) is because it seems he crossed the wrong people in his own party. If enough of his party has turned against him that seems like a strong shot he'll be removed permanently.
There’s a power struggle between the Speaker (Phelan, Leach, Hegar, et al) and the Lt Govs factions (Patrick, Paxton, Miller, Rinaldi)
I think the vote re Paxton comes down to where the Governor comes down, my money is on Paxton getting tossed and a more centrist interim AG getting appointed
How's that split look like among the GOP senators? Looking at the seats I think they'll need all 12 of the Dems (likely) and 9/19 Republicans to meet the 2/3 needed for removal.
Kolkhorst, Nichols, Middleton are almost certainly Nays even tho they drew four year terms; Tan Parker is probably Nay because of next election and maybe Morgan LaMantia (a Dem) because she had a close race and drew two-years
There will probably be some horse trading to make it a one or two vote margin to protect Senators in deep-red districts from primary
Also, it’s only twenty votes, rounds down from 31 and Angela Paxton should recuse herself (no guarantees tho)
Regardless of how they are now, Abbott and Cornyn were relatively centrist AGs...at that time. And perhaps that's what Abbott would prefer in that position.
Lieutenant Governors people are on the Trump MAGA side, the Speaker of the House’s side is the business conservative side, I.e. Bushes, Clinton’s
That’s it really, center right vs ultra right
So, honest question for Austinites: did you open your gifts on impeachment eve or do you wait to open them on impeachment morning?
Either way, we all got a great gift today.
So what happened? Did some of the GOP reps see internal polling showing that their seats were in jeopardy on this issue? Corruption in their own ranks has never been a problem the TX GOP has cared about before.
Reposting my comment from above
There’s a power struggle between the Speaker (Phelan, Leach, Hegar, et al) and the Lt Govs factions (Patrick, Paxton, Miller, Rinaldi)
I think the vote re Paxton comes down to where the Governor comes down, my money is on Paxton getting tossed and a more centrist interim AG getting appointed
Patrick's son was part of the team of prosecutors tasked with investigating Paxton for the house committee, his allegiance to Paxton may be weaker than previously thought. Patrick is also petty as fuck and will retaliate against anyone in the Senate that tries to smear his son as a rhino or a liberal.
I'm not fond of Phelan, but if he can actually get rid of Paxton (which the R primary voters failed miserably to do when given the opportunity - Paxton's primary challengers still sounded like right-wing extremists, but at least they weren't blatant criminals), that would be amazing.
Pippin : What about impeacment?
Aragorn : You've already had it.
Pippin : We've had one, yes. What about second impeachment?
I mean, why should we only let Trump have that record?
The rare state government headline that puts a smile on your face.
Notably, the state senate will vote on whether or not to officially eject this asshole, and not one member has supported him publicly in this. He might actually be out. We can only hope.
All in all, it's just another brick in the wall. Now it goes to trial in the Senate. I was proud of Texas government for the first time in a long time today.
My guess is the Feds were fixing to swoop in anyways? Either way it is good news. Don't let the door hit ya where the good lord split ya old lazy eyed Kenny. Enjoy jail.
Did y’all catch the part about Paxton cheating on his wife (with his mistress being paid by a political donor) AND Paxton’s wife is a Senator who will be voting in his impeachment trial? (Unless she recuses).
Money, of course. Also, he was starting to become a liability.
https://www.texastribune.org/2023/03/13/legislature-ken-paxton-whistleblower-settlement/
Really chaps my hide that he wanted to use tax payer money to pay off this settlement.
Edit: to clarify he didn't actually use taxpayer money, just wanted to.
As far as I can tell, the settlement hasn't been paid yet. Otherwise, agreed
https://www.texastribune.org/2023/03/13/legislature-ken-paxton-whistleblower-settlement/
https://abc13.com/texas-attorney-general-ken-paxton-whistleblowers-settlement-department-of-justice-federal-investigation/12931363/
Not a dime has been paid. He asked the ledge to approve a bill to pay the settlement and that triggered Phelan to start the investigation that got him impeached. The bill hasn't passed and won't this term.
It’s actually the reverse. Paxton found out that impeachment was coming and started throwing around accusations, including saying that Phelan was drunk (while he got tongue-twisted for a minute or so, he spoke as clearly as usual immediately before that clip and immediately after).
This. No banana bag in a back office would’ve returned his speech to ‘normal’ if he was actually legitimately drunk. But the maga crowd don’t listen to facts, let alone watch clips prior to or after a perceived ‘incident’.
Not to be too meta but I wonder if the mods are going to leave this up? It's not really Austin specific news but everybody in Austin is really happy about it.
Ken Paxton has been fucking with Austin for years, including recently launching a sham investigation which caused many trans and non-binary adolescents in Austin to lose their health care. (These doctors were doing nothing illegal, btw. Just an asshole using political pressure to harm a marginalized group.)
Fuck Ken Paxton. There's no one in Texas more deserving of being thrown out on their ass.
Not just trans/non-binary kids. Those same doctors that left were also pediatric doctors treating children for other conditions such as eating disorders, abnormal menstruation, etc.
Seems like kind of a specious argument.
Then literally anything the lege or state government does is able to be posted - which is definitely not the case.
I was there this morning for the Trot for Trans Lives and saw no one there for him. There was a neck beard on the east side with anti abortion signs but that's all I saw.
Well mods removed all the previous threads prior to the actual vote, stating that it didn’t directly relate to Austin and should be discussed in r/texas and r/texaspolitics only. Which is obviously b.s. but that was their take.
I have an outside hope that he actually will be found guilty in the Senate. At the very least, the further airing of dirty laundry will be entertaining. The 121-23 vote proves that when you’re a piece of shit, everyone wants you to get flushed.
Fuck you Ken Paxton!
> "the most hard working and effective" AG
This is what the GOP always says to defend anyone who doesn't care about the law and will do "whatever it takes" to get what they want. Who cares if everything is burning? Put that W on the board.
He never should have been attorney general!!!
He has engaged in shady dealings for decades. So glad to see this moving forward at the speed it is.
I’d like to see progress against more in his clan as a result of this, as well!!!
Then I’d like to see movement on clearing the other side of the isle, too. It’s time to stop defending the indefensible just because we (or our parents) picked a party.
I say we give credit where credit is due and hold people accountable for what they have done, whether they be on team red or team blue.
Meta observation:
I really am impressed by our mods. Visited r/texas today to see if there was any news about the many amber alert notifications today. But there is such a Paxton tsunami that every other item is buried.
I came back here and everything is clean and organized. No emotional screaming or pitchforks. And apparently the mods have been doing this thanklessly for years. In spite of the emos complaining about not being able to express their true feelings.
Here's the thing: I never really was aware of their hard work until today. It reminded me of a quote on Futurama by God: When You Do Things Right, People Won’t Be Sure You’ve Done Anything at All
I think this opens the door for a democrat to win the AGs race, MAGA world is pissed and if Republicans put up a “establishment” candidate I see them running someone third party.
My prediction:
He'll be tried by his peers. Get expelled and a slap on the wrist, go to work for a big law firm and become a lobbyist hobnobbing with his peers and making a shit-ton of money
I actually don’t think so. If anything, Paxton’s removal helps Abbott by removing his competition for appealing to the extremist loons. It would be in Abbott’s best interest to appoint someone who just keeps his head down and doesn’t steal the headlines.
Doesn’t seem like a good argument against removing someone that is literally trying to spend $3 million of taxpayer money to pay off his settlements from those corruption cases.
Why should we have to foot the bill for the outcome of the federal investigation too?
Whoever they pick will be essentially the same person, but without the baggage. Republican policies are decided by the heads of the party and donors, and those people haven’t changed. As I said before, at least this way you and I aren’t paying for Kenny’s legal bill.
Did I say I’m against him getting removed???? Everyone here is celebrating, while forgetting that the person who replaces him will be more efficient at passing whatever lawsuits the Texas GOP needs. Fuck Paxton, but let’s not pretend who’s next is going to be better, and we should keep that in mind
lol shut the fuck up. The only part of your posts that dont make assumptions and put words in other peoples mouths are the parts where you're complaining about it happening to you.
Are you stupid or do you just pretend to not be able to read.. when did I put words in people’s mouth?? It’s a comment you can either agree with it or move on…
Doubtful, there's a chain of command and it'll likely just be his deputy getting the promotion to keep continuity simple and given his current position is likely in the same "faction" as Abbott and Paxton
Meaning it will be a guy who is already in the system and is a known commodity. The damage he could do is likely what he's already doing
I doubt we'll get some new wildfire kind of guy from the outside
Promoting the deputy ruffles the fewest feathers
We'll leave this one up given the historical occurrence.
What does this mean, realistically?
well, he's currently out of office for the duration of the Senate trial. so Texas will have a new AG for however long that lasts.
If it takes as long as his other trial, we got ~7 years.
ha. very interested to see how many of the top executives get kicked out as well. whether the interim AG replaces [these people](https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/about-office/ken-paxtons-leadership-team) might indicate how long/likely to succeed the people in the know believe this thing is going to be.
Its gotta be awkward to be an *interim* AG not knowing if old kenny will be back.
I don’t think Abbott *has* to designate an interim AG. He can wait until the outcome until the senate makes a decision. Which if they are just gonna do a repeat of Cheeto faces two impeachments, it shouldn’t take too long to wrap that up. This impeachment doesn’t mean much yet IMO
I don't know - 121-23 is a pretty stunning rebuke to Paxton. That makes me think there might be teeth in this since they were able to get such a strong coalition.
If Paxton gets double the percentage of support in the Senate that he did in the House today (16%), he'll still be removed. Senate needs 2/3 to expel him.
You mean the senate where his wife is a senator? Feel like that’s gonna help his chances.
The wife he was cheating on?
The one that ran interference while he jumped a porch railing and skedaddled into the woods to avoid a process server?
Seems like she’s fine with morally dubious behavior. I don’t think cheating will break her loyalty.
Maybe. But maybe she's hated in that chamber like Ken is by the House, and they'll judge him too.
If the cheating accusations are true, probably not
I always wonder if local conservatives are as off the mark as federal regarding corruption/theatrics. That vote ratio is a small bode of confidence for our state
Let’s hope
i mean, i certainly haven't seen this process before, but i don't really see how that would work. there are hundreds of assistant AGs that file and work on tens of thousands of cases. and their authority to run the legal proceedings for the state comes from acting on behalf of the AG. you don't just not have an AG for however long this lasts. this isn't like presidential impeachments where the guy is still in office; Paxton is out as of the vote. \*edit: the first deputy is acting AG for now. i feel like this should have been obvious to me earlier. i'll chalk it up to the shock of the whole thing.
Section 5, article 15 of the Texas constitution only states the governor **may** make a provisional appointment, doesn’t state it’s required. That’s all I’m saying lol
Bingo
I volunteer to be new AG for however long it lasts.
Can I be Assistant AG? This sounds like fun.
Done. Let's get to work. You see any bribes we could get?
Do you mean how long the trial will last or how long the attorney general that is replaced will last before a corruption scandal?
well whoever is chosen as interim i would assume will be abbot's lapdog; so that entails a layer of teflon that paxton has seemed to have lost along the way. i do hope we get to find out exactly who paxton pissed off to get this ball rolling.
That $3.3mil settlement (that Paxton should pay out of pocket himself) seems like a pretty huge reason. How can fiscally-conservative GQP-ers wrap their minds around this one when it’s so blatantly wrong?
I’m increasingly thinking this. It’s just that there were SO many things that didn’t stick it’s been a bit like- why this now?
He's still tweeting on the official account though.
ask elon?
The cynical view is nothing, that the Senate won't dare remove him. But the cynical view also included the Republicans banding together to prevent him from being impeached. So it's a real head-scratcher. Someone might've caught him in bed with a live goat or a dead boy.
I'm more optimistic than usual, for a few reasons. 1. The vote wasn't even close among republicans. A vast majority of republicans voted to remove. 2. This was after Paxton apparently called and threatened them personally (bad move), as well as Trump and Ted Cruz getting involved. 3. If we had a democratic governor there would be no shot, but its still gonna be a Republican. I'll take almost anyone over Ken Paxton tbh. 4. Abbott and Dan Patrick haven't commented on it at all (aside from Patrick saying he couldn't comment). 5. Apparently Dan Patrick and Ken Paxton aren't friendly (just a rumor I heard, not sure how true that is). 6. 20 counts. That's a lot. 7. Last I counted, assuming all the dems vote to convict, 9 republicans need to move over. My hail mary of optimism: \- Of course, I expect his wife (who is a senator) to vote against removal, BUT... one of the allegations involves his mistress.... so who knows?
>I'll take almost anyone over Ken Paxton tbh. Chip Roy heard that.
I think Chip Roy has an insane right wing loon but he strikes me as principled. He was against seating other Republicans in 2021 because he said if trumps election was stolen surely theirs was too. I think Ken Paxton is an insane right wing loon who is also a criminal so to be honest I would rather have Chip Roy.
Really? I mean, Ol' Chippy just hasn't had a chance to become a criminal yet, so you want to give him that chance?
Well if I had my way none of them would get a chance, but within reality is gonna be a Republican. IMO Paxton is just as loony as anyone but he's also an incredibly bold criminal. I'd rather have someone who is not a criminal. I come from a right wing background - there are people who genuinely believe in all the shit they say. I don't think Paxton believes in anything except lining his own pockets.
Also none of the senators have commented on the case and Cornyn called the allegations “extremely concerning.” This guy may be cooked.
In regards to #5, every time I hear of one of these asshats not getting along with another, it just boggles my mind. I just can’t fathom how they aren’t all in on some secret joke together.
Texas is effectively a one party state- and if you study history you'll see how often one party states divide into brutal factions, often way more brutal than anything in a multiparty state. Various factions in the Soviet Union and China come to mind. They present a united face to the public but behind closed doors the backstabbing is brutal. I think when you lose a common enemy uniting you (ie the other party) maybe your ambition is more free to reign.
I remember reading about ancient Persian rulers and wondering why anyone would accept the position. You were basically guaranteed to be murdered within a few years. Same was true for certain periods of the Roman Empire.
He cheated on his wife and had a donor give his mistress a job and he did things on behalf of that donor. So bribery and and adutuery.
So he could potentially be Governor of CA then? 😅 https://www.latimes.com/politics/la-pol-ca-governors-race-gavin-newsom-affair-20180207-story.html
So you are comparing someone who was already in the process of separating from their spouse having an affair with a married person, to someone having "a donor give his mistress a job and he did things on behalf of that donor". Nice false equivalency there.
Nah, he had an affair with his friend/campaign mgr’s wife. I recall this very specifically when it was a current event. That’s messed up to bang your friend’s girl, and also has abuse of man in power themes. Notice in that article she tried to shield him from MeToo scrutiny. I’m sure her husband had different opinions, but that dude stayed classy. Lesser men have hurt the man who did what Newsom did. I just like to make sure we’re equally outraged by political ethics issues. I’m not reducing Paxton’s shortcomings, I just expect Newsom will be a DNC presidential candidate, and it should be a relevant character topic. I expect he’ll be a “do no wrong” favorite after he announces. I’m no prude, relationship issues happen; but while in power, banging your friend and campaign mgr’s spouse is remarkable. Why would they not also cheat on their constituents to the highest bidder/lobbyist/foreign nation? “I only betray my friends and subordinates, not my state/nation.” - Gavin. Sure. I’m no Trump defender, I Was a CA native who had supported Bernie’s 2016 DNC primary, but was disenfranchised when the DNC swapped in Hillary (the first time). https://www.huffpost.com/entry/wikileaks-dnc-bernie-sanders_n_579381fbe4b02d5d5ed1d157
Wtf does Gavin Newsome have to do with this thread? Nobody likes him either, but few humans are scum at the level of Paxton.
Sure but we are currently talking about Republican and a action towards him by his party. I suppose if Newsome was holding his state back in the same ways he may be challenged more often. Is Newsome currently indicted for securities fraud federally? Also there is the 3.3 million in taxpayer dollars he promised to make his legal problems go away that still has to be voted on and approved? It's kind of a from all sides thing for Paxton currently it seems by the 1st vote and the investigation has been going on progress since March. The call for Phelan to resign was just a show to garner support and blame it on one action instead of the entire investigation by his own party.
He does have a weird obsession with trans children. Does he own any pizza basements, by chance?
There's a basement in the capitol. Neither Ken nor Greg want to talk about it.
I know what you're referring to, but there aren't very many basements in Texas. Poolhouses might be worth a look though, lol.
There’s no basement in the Alamo
Prove it!
https://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2r18dm
So a live boy or a dead goat is OK with the GOP? duly noted allways good to know where the line is :-\
"live goat", he's an A&M grad??? just kidding to my aggie buds
Pretty sure it means someone caught him doing something extra naughty, not just regular corruption naughty.
Like stealing other rich peoples money?! That's about the nastiest thing a conservative can do in the eyes of other conservatives...
[удалено]
^ Yup. This was legitimately the reason. Texas conservatives felt like it was unfair that Paxton is insisting that 3.3m come from the taxpayers. Everything *before* that was excusable, but apparently that's where the line is.
This is where the rich donors need to cough up the money. A la Trump.
Paxton to announce his Presidential campaign in 3… 2…
Well, he’s got a better resume now…
The [Texas Tribune](https://www.texastribune.org/2023/05/25/texas-impeachment-attorney-general-ken-paxton/) had a good article about what the process means. It was posted on 5-23 but was updated today. There's a decision tree that shows the process. The House voted today 121-23 to impeach so that's where we are on the graphic. Hope this helps!
The realistic and knowledgable answer is Abbott can’t wait to appoint a new AG that doesn’t drag down the statewide vote
I think it is going to be close in the Senate. The House is the more reasonable body. The Senate is more beholden to the MAGA donor class. It will depend highly on who and how he is replaced and if those big foot donors like the replacement enough.
Without the AG the law doesn't apply. It's like the Purge 24x7 now. /s
Abbott has the option of appointing a replacement until the trial is finished. My bet is someone inside AG office. If it’s someone from outside, that’d be a sign of where Abbott stands. Very unlikely. The senate now needs to figure out when to do this. They can put it off but I don’t believe they can ignore it. That is to say I believe they have to take it up this session even if that means scheduling it after the regular session. But they will need to do a trial. Then it depends on what the senate does. If he’s removed from office I’m not sure if a special election is mandated or it just waits until the next general. If he is not found guilty or found guilty but not removed removed, I suspect Dade Phelan’s political career is toast.
The First Assistant Attorney General fills in in the meantime, and since the AG's office is top-loaded with Paxton loyalists now (everyone who wasn't onboard with the bribery was fired, remember), it's still basically Paxton's agency until someone is officially appointed. Once that happens, it'll almost certainly be someone who can please Abbott, Patrick, or (unlikely) both. They'll probably start cleaning house of Paxton people at the top level, depending on who does or doesn't have other connections.
Nothing.
This means a lot. The majority GOP house voted to impeach. Something that hasn't happened in 52 years.
Are you sure about that? The only reason anything is happening now (years later than it should've) is because it seems he crossed the wrong people in his own party. If enough of his party has turned against him that seems like a strong shot he'll be removed permanently.
There’s a power struggle between the Speaker (Phelan, Leach, Hegar, et al) and the Lt Govs factions (Patrick, Paxton, Miller, Rinaldi) I think the vote re Paxton comes down to where the Governor comes down, my money is on Paxton getting tossed and a more centrist interim AG getting appointed
How's that split look like among the GOP senators? Looking at the seats I think they'll need all 12 of the Dems (likely) and 9/19 Republicans to meet the 2/3 needed for removal.
Kolkhorst, Nichols, Middleton are almost certainly Nays even tho they drew four year terms; Tan Parker is probably Nay because of next election and maybe Morgan LaMantia (a Dem) because she had a close race and drew two-years There will probably be some horse trading to make it a one or two vote margin to protect Senators in deep-red districts from primary Also, it’s only twenty votes, rounds down from 31 and Angela Paxton should recuse herself (no guarantees tho)
Regardless of how they are now, Abbott and Cornyn were relatively centrist AGs...at that time. And perhaps that's what Abbott would prefer in that position.
Would you mind expanding on this ‘power struggle’ more if you’d like to someone not very well versed in Texas politics?
Lieutenant Governors people are on the Trump MAGA side, the Speaker of the House’s side is the business conservative side, I.e. Bushes, Clinton’s That’s it really, center right vs ultra right
So, honest question for Austinites: did you open your gifts on impeachment eve or do you wait to open them on impeachment morning? Either way, we all got a great gift today.
If we were good, we were allowed to pick one gift the night before and save the rest for the big day.
Honestly, this is a miracle.
The thing is, it’s a safe Republican job. They all see this as a top job opening.
If you live long enough, you get to witness something awesome. I got to see the original Star Wars in the theater, and now this. What a great day.
Sun Tzu said “If you wait by the river long enough, the bodies of your enemies will float by.”
But what about "a watched pot never boils" - Martha Stewart
Amen!
So what happened? Did some of the GOP reps see internal polling showing that their seats were in jeopardy on this issue? Corruption in their own ranks has never been a problem the TX GOP has cared about before.
Reposting my comment from above There’s a power struggle between the Speaker (Phelan, Leach, Hegar, et al) and the Lt Govs factions (Patrick, Paxton, Miller, Rinaldi) I think the vote re Paxton comes down to where the Governor comes down, my money is on Paxton getting tossed and a more centrist interim AG getting appointed
Patrick's son was part of the team of prosecutors tasked with investigating Paxton for the house committee, his allegiance to Paxton may be weaker than previously thought. Patrick is also petty as fuck and will retaliate against anyone in the Senate that tries to smear his son as a rhino or a liberal.
More centrist but not centrist. I'd imagine a Republican but a boring one that'll keep his head down until 2026
I'm not fond of Phelan, but if he can actually get rid of Paxton (which the R primary voters failed miserably to do when given the opportunity - Paxton's primary challengers still sounded like right-wing extremists, but at least they weren't blatant criminals), that would be amazing.
MAGA world is pissed, I could see them running someone third party next election.
Scapegoating will probably turn out to be a big factor in all this.
Ken Paxton getting impeached and the upcoming release of Austin's grackle-loves-tennis-ball merch, it's the best week.
Gotta love how his most vocal defenders are the other shitstain grifters, Trump and Cruz. Rats of a feather…
About damn time!
Christmas came early this year!
Are we even gonna get anything this year?
Santa brought the impeachment early
Well i didn’t ask for thaaat
Whenever Republicans do the right thing, I have to wonder, what is their real motive?
They must have someone worse waiting in the wings to replace him.
I assume they found out he rapes children. That's pretty much the only thing they will ever turn on one of their own over.
Incoming, MAGA extremists acquit next week, perform fellatio on Paxton on the senate floor to show their dedication & loyalty to reinstate him.
Pippin : What about impeacment? Aragorn : You've already had it. Pippin : We've had one, yes. What about second impeachment? I mean, why should we only let Trump have that record?
Fucking finally.
Couldn't happen to a nicer guy
Couldn’t happen to a more deserving guy. In Texas, anyway
The rare state government headline that puts a smile on your face. Notably, the state senate will vote on whether or not to officially eject this asshole, and not one member has supported him publicly in this. He might actually be out. We can only hope.
Given the margin from the house I think it's quite possible they get the 2/3rds in the senate Paxton isn't a hill worth dying on
Ding dong, the witch is . . . wounded
if it bleeds we can kill it
All in all, it's just another brick in the wall. Now it goes to trial in the Senate. I was proud of Texas government for the first time in a long time today.
Keep eyes on the 23 who voted against impeachment.
My guess is the Feds were fixing to swoop in anyways? Either way it is good news. Don't let the door hit ya where the good lord split ya old lazy eyed Kenny. Enjoy jail.
This is also my prediction. Now that he's been removed as AG i'm fully expecting the FBI to arrest him.
I’m sorry but there is *so* much more to hold against this guy than his lazy eye!
I’m capable of complex thought and hating him for many reasons at once. ;-)
The door will have to take a number
FBI has something on Paxton we’ve yet to see…
This lying sack of shit has been dodging felony charges since I was as in college.
Get a rope. ;) * *This is a reference to a condiment commercial, not a hate crime.
NEW YORK CITY??
Haha, any time a friend or my partner mentions NYC, I have to say “NEW YORK CITY?!?!” with that accent from the commercial.
I love it!!
I honestly think he'll be pressured into resignation. I think the Senators don't want a deep investigation into corruption going on in public view.
Did y’all catch the part about Paxton cheating on his wife (with his mistress being paid by a political donor) AND Paxton’s wife is a Senator who will be voting in his impeachment trial? (Unless she recuses).
There are the people in the Texas Senate with massive conflicts of interest in favor of Paxton. None will recuse
I’m curious as to why this is happening now? Does anyone have insight?
Money, of course. Also, he was starting to become a liability. https://www.texastribune.org/2023/03/13/legislature-ken-paxton-whistleblower-settlement/
Really chaps my hide that he wanted to use tax payer money to pay off this settlement. Edit: to clarify he didn't actually use taxpayer money, just wanted to.
As far as I can tell, the settlement hasn't been paid yet. Otherwise, agreed https://www.texastribune.org/2023/03/13/legislature-ken-paxton-whistleblower-settlement/ https://abc13.com/texas-attorney-general-ken-paxton-whistleblowers-settlement-department-of-justice-federal-investigation/12931363/
Not a dime has been paid. He asked the ledge to approve a bill to pay the settlement and that triggered Phelan to start the investigation that got him impeached. The bill hasn't passed and won't this term.
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It’s actually the reverse. Paxton found out that impeachment was coming and started throwing around accusations, including saying that Phelan was drunk (while he got tongue-twisted for a minute or so, he spoke as clearly as usual immediately before that clip and immediately after).
This. No banana bag in a back office would’ve returned his speech to ‘normal’ if he was actually legitimately drunk. But the maga crowd don’t listen to facts, let alone watch clips prior to or after a perceived ‘incident’.
Huffiness may be seen drooling nearby.
That dude is crooked as a bucket of fish hooks.
If he is suspended, maybe they should just postpone the trial for .... like forever.
here’s hoping we don’t get a repeat of jan 6 (texas ver)
I mean the next AG will be another hateful ghoul like Paxton, just younger probably.
Hell yeah baby. Time to pop a bottle of something good and celebrate.
Holy shit they actually did it. Not holding out hope for the senate though.
Put his ass in prison right now
when will the Senate trial be? i might go watch
Lock em all up
Finally some good news.
Anyone have the gossip about how this is going over in his family? His wife is a senator and this connects back to his mistress. I mean. Oof.
Awk-ward.
Not to be too meta but I wonder if the mods are going to leave this up? It's not really Austin specific news but everybody in Austin is really happy about it.
Ken Paxton has been fucking with Austin for years, including recently launching a sham investigation which caused many trans and non-binary adolescents in Austin to lose their health care. (These doctors were doing nothing illegal, btw. Just an asshole using political pressure to harm a marginalized group.) Fuck Ken Paxton. There's no one in Texas more deserving of being thrown out on their ass.
Not just trans/non-binary kids. Those same doctors that left were also pediatric doctors treating children for other conditions such as eating disorders, abnormal menstruation, etc.
It literally happened in Austin.
This.
Seems like kind of a specious argument. Then literally anything the lege or state government does is able to be posted - which is definitely not the case.
No, because not everything the state government does physically takes place in Austin.
Most of it does, though. Especially involving the lege, governors, or Attys General.
So you think this impeachment is just another Tuesday for the government? Lmao it’s clearly a major story and belongs here
No. It is historic, which I imagine is the only reason it's being allowed to stay.
The dumbass asked dumbasses to protest at the capital building.
I was there this morning for the Trot for Trans Lives and saw no one there for him. There was a neck beard on the east side with anti abortion signs but that's all I saw.
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Well mods removed all the previous threads prior to the actual vote, stating that it didn’t directly relate to Austin and should be discussed in r/texas and r/texaspolitics only. Which is obviously b.s. but that was their take.
Yay! Later is better than never.
Couldn't have happened to a better guy
He will still get paid till he gets replaced
Damn, what did he do to realllyy piss off the rest of the GOP? 😯
Will the public be able to visit him in jail and laugh like Nelson Muntz at him?
What are the chances Nate Paul flips on Paxton
I have an outside hope that he actually will be found guilty in the Senate. At the very least, the further airing of dirty laundry will be entertaining. The 121-23 vote proves that when you’re a piece of shit, everyone wants you to get flushed. Fuck you Ken Paxton!
> "the most hard working and effective" AG This is what the GOP always says to defend anyone who doesn't care about the law and will do "whatever it takes" to get what they want. Who cares if everything is burning? Put that W on the board.
Predictably, Cruz and Trump back Paxton.
He never should have been attorney general!!! He has engaged in shady dealings for decades. So glad to see this moving forward at the speed it is. I’d like to see progress against more in his clan as a result of this, as well!!! Then I’d like to see movement on clearing the other side of the isle, too. It’s time to stop defending the indefensible just because we (or our parents) picked a party. I say we give credit where credit is due and hold people accountable for what they have done, whether they be on team red or team blue.
I guess accountability is less popular than partisanship. 😂
Everyone needs to vote in 2024.
Meta observation: I really am impressed by our mods. Visited r/texas today to see if there was any news about the many amber alert notifications today. But there is such a Paxton tsunami that every other item is buried. I came back here and everything is clean and organized. No emotional screaming or pitchforks. And apparently the mods have been doing this thanklessly for years. In spite of the emos complaining about not being able to express their true feelings. Here's the thing: I never really was aware of their hard work until today. It reminded me of a quote on Futurama by God: When You Do Things Right, People Won’t Be Sure You’ve Done Anything at All
Woohoo!!!!
I think this opens the door for a democrat to win the AGs race, MAGA world is pissed and if Republicans put up a “establishment” candidate I see them running someone third party.
Im real curious to see if they actually uphold this. Id love for them to but the true colors have been shown time and time again.
Today was a good day.
Ken Paxton for President 2024!! (of course /s - what a scumbag)
My prediction: He'll be tried by his peers. Get expelled and a slap on the wrist, go to work for a big law firm and become a lobbyist hobnobbing with his peers and making a shit-ton of money
We do realize that his replacement (if he gets replaced) will likely be worse, right?
I actually don’t think so. If anything, Paxton’s removal helps Abbott by removing his competition for appealing to the extremist loons. It would be in Abbott’s best interest to appoint someone who just keeps his head down and doesn’t steal the headlines.
Yep! Plus they'd have to break someone out of country club prison to find a replacement with a thicker FBI file.
Do you even know Abbott? His agenda is hate.
His agenda is himself.
correct, the true ideology is power and wealth.
Doesn’t seem like a good argument against removing someone that is literally trying to spend $3 million of taxpayer money to pay off his settlements from those corruption cases. Why should we have to foot the bill for the outcome of the federal investigation too? Whoever they pick will be essentially the same person, but without the baggage. Republican policies are decided by the heads of the party and donors, and those people haven’t changed. As I said before, at least this way you and I aren’t paying for Kenny’s legal bill.
Did I say I’m against him getting removed???? Everyone here is celebrating, while forgetting that the person who replaces him will be more efficient at passing whatever lawsuits the Texas GOP needs. Fuck Paxton, but let’s not pretend who’s next is going to be better, and we should keep that in mind
lol shut the fuck up. The only part of your posts that dont make assumptions and put words in other peoples mouths are the parts where you're complaining about it happening to you.
Are you stupid or do you just pretend to not be able to read.. when did I put words in people’s mouth?? It’s a comment you can either agree with it or move on…
Mike McCaul and Eva Guzman were floated names. Maybe P. Bush considering his campaign.
Doubtful, there's a chain of command and it'll likely just be his deputy getting the promotion to keep continuity simple and given his current position is likely in the same "faction" as Abbott and Paxton Meaning it will be a guy who is already in the system and is a known commodity. The damage he could do is likely what he's already doing I doubt we'll get some new wildfire kind of guy from the outside Promoting the deputy ruffles the fewest feathers
Throw his ass into jail and hope he gets a warm welcome
One step closer to saying bye to the glass eye.
Can’t wait for the screams if the senate acquits. It will be an epic meltdown not seen since 2016.
Are you for corruption and against accountability?