Ken Paxton is a populist, Tea Party conservative who was first elected to the office of Texas Attorney General in 2014. He is bitterly hated by establishment Republicans in Texas, not only for his willingness to use his office to advance the conservative agenda, but also because he had the audacity to win without the establishment’s permission. Repeatedly.
The Bush-wing of the Texas Republican Party has allied with RINOs and Democrats to engage in lawfare against Paxton, but despite their best efforts he has kept on winning.
Finally in 2022, the establishment played a trump card to eliminate Paxton. They ran a Bush family princeling against Paxton, knowing that Texans have an unyielding love for the Bushes. George P. Bush (the son of former Florida Governor Jeb Bush) already held statewide office in Texas as the state’s Land Commissioner. Then 46-year-old George P. was going to eradicate the Paxton problem, which would also place him on deck as Attorney General to replace Greg Abbott as Governor when the time came.
But Paxton then committed the most unforgiveable political act that establishment Texas Republicans have ever endured. He defeated a Bush at the ballot box.
The establishment decided that the voters of Texas were wrong, and that this electoral obscenity must be corrected. So they proceeded to impeach Ken Paxton in the Texas House of Representatives. 100% of Democrats joined the RINO Republicans to produce a 121 – 23 vote to thwart the will of Texas voters and impeach Mr. Paxton, for the purpose of removing him from office. The Senate trial will be next month.
Mark Pulliam wrote an excellent piece at The Federalist last week that explains the ugly political warfare that is going on against Paxton. Here are some excerpts, but I encourage you to read the whole thing.
Texas politics have long been rancorous, unscrupulous, and, in recent years, marred by bitter lawfare — weaponizing the legal system to circumvent election results.
Pulliam discusses the comical felony indictments in recent decades against Kay Bailey Hutchison, Tom DeLay, Rick Perry and others. He then brings it forward to the Paxton situation.
Another is the ongoing campaign to remove from office conservative Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, whom Texas voters overwhelmingly elected in 2014, and enthusiastically reelected in 2018 and 2022.
Paxton’s real “crime” is that he threw his hat into the GOP primary for the AG race in 2014 after the anointed establishment candidate, moderate Dan Branch, thought he had the Republican field to himself. In Texas, the AG position has often been used as a stepping stone to higher office — a path previously trod by both Sen. John Cornyn and current Texas Gov. Greg Abbott. When Tea Party firebrand Paxton upset establishment-favorite Branch in the 2014 GOP primary…the powerful establishment was furious. Branch had been endorsed by George W. Bush and other moderates. In Texas, as elsewhere, the moderate (or “RINO”
faction of the Republican Party loathes grassroots conservatives.
Pretty much any article about Paxton in the legacy media, or in Conservative Inc., will smear him as being ”scandal plagued” or “under criminal investigation.” It’s all a political hit job against him.
In retaliation for Paxton’s temerity, Branch’s establishment backers, who are supported by the state’s business community and control the Texas House of Representatives (where in 2010 then-House member Paxton unsuccessfully challenged establishment leader Joe Straus for speaker), unleashed a series of frivolous criminal charges against Paxton, which have been pending for eight years. Anti-Paxton forces orchestrated a flimsy fraud indictment from a paperwork violation unrelated to Paxton’s work as a legislator.
The conservative base fully understands what is going on, which has strengthened their support for Paxton.
The establishment fumed when Texas voters elected Paxton in 2014 despite extensive news coverage of the bogus fraud charges, and the consternation increased when he was reelected in 2018 and again in 2022 while the phony charges were still pending! Grassroots conservatives gave short shrift to the unproven allegations against Paxton, looking instead to his stellar record as Texas’ top prosecutor.
Paxton’s resounding GOP primary victory in 2022, against a crowded field that included George P. Bush (Jeb’s son and GWB’s nephew) … made the establishment apoplectic. In the primary runoff, Paxton beat Bush by more than a 2-to-1 margin. In the general election, Paxton outpolled his Democrat challenger 53.4 to 43.7 percent.
Even worse for the establishment, now that the Bush heir was dispatched, there was almost nothing to prevent Paxton from succeeding Gov. Abbott when he finally steps aside.
The establishment worried that Paxton, thrice elected as AG, would become the frontrunner to succeed Abbott as governor, decided to double down on its lawfare campaign. Provoked by Paxton’s claim that Texas Speaker Dade Phelan should resign for appearing on the House floor while intoxicated, in May the House voted to impeach Paxton on additional charges of doing favors for a wealthy campaign donor and terminating four staffers who claimed to be “whistleblowers.”
Paxton is suspended from his AG duties until the trial in the Texas Senate next month, where a 2/3 majority is necessary to convict and remove him from office.
In Texas, as in the nation’s capital, impeachment is just another form of lawfare. Convicting Paxton would bar him from holding public office in the future — precisely the establishment’s goal, contrary to the voters’ mandate. Such a result would be tantamount to a banana republic coup unworthy of the Lone Star State.
The Texas version of Kremlinologists are unsure if the votes are there in the Senate to remove Paxton or not. Republican Senators who vote to convict should plan on being primaried, and in Texas the conservative base holds the power in primaries.
If I could add one final bitter note as a person who defended both George Bushes in their darkest hours, this is an insulting betrayal.
It’s probably also worth noting that as “rare” and “solemn” as impeachments are, they are pretty much a political certainty for anyone who dares to defeat a Bush at the ballot box.
Bill Clinton defeated George H.W. Bush in 1992, ending GHWB’s political career. Bill Clinton was subsequently impeached.
Donald Trump defeated Jeb Bush in the in the 2016 Republican presidential primaries, ending Jeb’s political career. Trump was subsequently impeached.
Ken Paxton defeated George P. Bush in the in the 2022 Texas primaries, ending George P.’s political career. Now Paxton is being impeached.
I believe it was Ian Fleming who wrote, “Once is happenstance. Twice is coincidence. Three times is enemy action.”
As noted above, Paxton accused his persecutor, Texas House Speaker Dade Phelan, of conducting business while being intoxicated. Here is video of that incident.
[buck.throckmorton at protonmail dot com]