“While I voted to hear the evidence against and ultimately acquit Attorney General Ken Paxton during the Senate court of impeachment, based on the evidence and the record at the time, I believed that was the right thing to do. However, recent developments have made me question whether AG Paxton and his legal team misled the Senate. Just last week, AG Paxton filed an amended answer in the whistleblower lawsuit, the same case that catalyzed AG Paxton’s impeachment after he attempted to settle that case for $3.3M. In last week’s filing, AG Paxton stated, ‘OAG hereby elects not to contest any issue of fact in this case, as to the claim or damages.'”
“While AG Paxton claims this decision is not an admission of guilt, the fact of the matter is it is an admission of guilt. He can’t accept the whistleblower’s claims against him while touting that he’s innocent against those very claims. This admission by AG Paxton is exceptionally concerning as he admitted to violating at least one and potentially more of the articles of impeachment. Specifically, Article 6. which addressed AG Paxton’s violation of the Texas Whistleblower Act. Accordingly, AG Paxton completely changed his position in less than four months.”
“Further, in his effort to end the whistleblower lawsuit, AG Paxton has essentially written a blank check – at the taxpayers’ expense – in an attempt to stop the case and prevent his deposition. Thus, AG Paxton is threatening to expose Texas taxpayers to a judgment of well over $3.3 Million, all in an attempt to avoid his own actions from being exposed. At this stage, and the point of this letter, I am asking the Senate whether there is a legal mechanism to reopen the impeachment proceedings.”
“Failure to at least consider this possibility runs the risk of AG Paxton making a mockery of the Texas Senate,” writes Republican Texas state Senator Drew Springer in a letter to complete asshole Lt Governor Dan Patrick (president of the state Senate). We’re sure Patrick will get right on that one.
Luckily for Springer he doesn’t have to worry about Paxton and Patrick having some pedophile-enabling sociopath primary him over this walkback, as he’s is retiring at the end of this term.