The Texas House of Representatives impeached Attorney General Ken Paxton on Saturday by an overwhelming vote. Attorney General Paxton is immediately suspended from office as he awaits a trial in the Texas Senate.
During a hearing on the floor of the Texas House, more than 81 percent of the members voted to impeach Attorney General Paxton on the 20 articles of impeachment filed by the House General Investigations Committee. The final vote was 121 ayes, 23 nays, two present not voting, and three abstentions.
The debate which lasted nearly four hours centered mostly around the process that some members believed was rushed and did not provide due process. Members of the General Investigations Committee laid out the facts they believe support the matter moving forward to a trial in the Texas Senate.
Nearly every member who spoke talked about the solemn nature of the actions they were about to take.“Today is a very grim and difficult day for this House and for the state of Texas,” House General Investigations Committee Member David Spiller (R-Jacksboro) said on the House floor.
Objections to the process were nearly exclusively about the process and not about whether Mr. Paxton was guilty or innocent of the allegations made against him in the 20 articles of impeachment.
“This process is indefensible,” Representative John Smithee, (R-Amarillo) said on the floor of the House. “It concerns me a lot because today it could be General Paxton, tomorrow it could be you and the next day it could be me.”
Mr. Paxton tweeted a statement shortly after the vote to impeach by the Texas House.
Under the Texas Constitution, Paxton is immediately suspended from his position and Governor Greg Abbott can now appoint an interim Attorney General. Breitbart Texas reached out to the governor’s office for a statement. An immediate response was not available.
Republicans also hold a 19-12 majority in the Texas Senate. The Texas Constitution requires a two-thirds majority of the senators who are present to convict and permanently remove Paxton from his elected position of attorney general. This means that nine Republican senators would have to join with 12 Democrats to convict.
Bob Price serves as associate editor and senior news contributor for the Breitbart Texas-Border team. He is an original member of the Breitbart Texas team. Price is a regular panelist on Fox 26 Houston’s What’s Your Point? Sunday-morning talk show. Follow him on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX.
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