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AUSTIN (United States) , May 28 (AP) — Texas’ Republican-led House of Representatives on Saturday impeached state Attorney General Ken Paxton on articles that included bribery and abuse of public trust, a slap in the face of a later Republican. Sudden, historic condemnation from fellow Republicans Despite years of scandal and alleged crimes, he was the star of the conservative legal movement.
The vote resulted in Paxton’s immediate suspension pending the outcome of the state Senate trial and authorized Republican Gov. Greg Abbott to appoint someone else as Texas’ top attorney in the interim.
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The vote brought the sudden downfall of one of the Republican Party’s most prominent legal fighters, who in 2020 asked the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn President Joe Biden’s decision to defeat Donald Trump in the election. That makes Paxton the third serving official to be impeached in Texas’ nearly 200-year history.
Paxton, 60, denounced what he called “political drama” based on “hearsay and gossip, parroting long-proven claims” and said it was an attempt to disenfranchise voters who re-elected him last November. It was unclear where the attorney general was Saturday, but he shared statements from supporters on Twitter during the House proceedings.
“No one should be above the law, at least not the top law enforcement officials in Texas,” Rep. David Spiller, a Republican member of the committee investigating Paxton, said in a statement. said in the opening speech. Democratic Rep. Ann Johnson told lawmakers that Texas’s “top cop is under investigation.” Rep. Charlie Geren, a Republican committee member, said Paxton had called lawmakers and threatened them with political “consequences,” without elaborating.
Paxton has been under investigation by the FBI for years over allegations that he used his office to help donors and was indicted separately on securities fraud charges in 2015, though he has yet to appear in court. Until this week, his fellow Republicans had taken a silent stance on the allegations.
Lawmakers allied with Paxton sought to discredit the investigation by pointing out that hired investigators, not panelists, interviewed witnesses. They also said several investigators had cast votes in the Democratic primary, staining the impeachment case, and that they had not had enough time to review the evidence.
“I think it could be the weaponization of politics,” said Rep. Tony Tinderholt, one of the most conservative members of the House. Republican Rep. John Smithee likened the process to “a mob going out on a Saturday for an afternoon lynching.”
The top elected Republican in Texas has been particularly silent on Paxton this week. But on Saturday, both Trump and U.S. Senator Ted Cruz defended him, with the senator calling the impeachment proceedings “a caricature” and saying the attorney general’s legal issues should be left to the courts.
“Free Ken Paxton,” Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social, warning that if House Republicans continue the process, “I will fight you.”
Abbott praised Paxton in January when he was sworn in for a third term, but he has remained silent. The governor spoke at the House’s Memorial Day service about three hours before impeachment proceedings began. Republican House Speaker Dade Phelan was also in attendance, but the two did not appear to have exchanged words, and Abbott left without commenting to reporters. (Associated Press)
(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)
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