LUBBOCK, Texas, May 27 (Reuters) –
The Texas House on Saturday voted to impeach Attorney General Ken Paxton, a conservative firebrand and ally of former President Donald Trump who has been accused by his fellow Republicans of abuse of office.
The 149-member House voted 121-23 to impeach Paxton after several hours of debate during which the chamber heard speeches from both proponents and opponents of impeachment.
Paxton will now be temporarily removed from office pending a trial in the Senate, where his wife, Angela Paxton, is a senator. A two-thirds Senate vote is needed to permanently expel him.
The 20 articles of impeachment accuse Paxton of improperly aiding a wealthy political donor, conducting a sham investigation against whisteblowers in his office whom he fired, and covering up his wrongdoing in a separate federal securities fraud case against him, among other offenses.
Paxton has denied the charges and last week lashed out against his critics, saying that removing him from office would be a gift for President Joe Biden and his Democratic agenda.
Paxton’s impeachment proceedings laid bare the rift among Texas Republicans. Some spoke passionately in support of impeaching the state’s top law enforcement official.
“Attorney General Paxton continuously and blatantly violated laws, rules, policies and procedures,” Representative David Spiller said ahead of the vote on Saturday.
Others vehemently opposed it. John Smithee, a long-serving conservative member of the chamber, said he was not speaking in Paxton’s defense but criticized the process and said there was insufficient evidence.
Former President Donald Trump, who is running for re-election in 2024, on Saturday threw his support behind the embattled Texas attorney general with a message on his social media channel Truth Social that called to “Free Ken Paxton.”
Paxton has staked out a position on the far right on divisive cultural issues. He has sued the Biden administration nearly 50 times attempting to halt what has he labeled as “unlawful tyrannical policies” on issues including immigration, gun rights and business regulation.
The five-member Texas House General Investigating Committee voted unanimously on Thursday to recommend that Paxton be impeached and removed from office.
“They are showcasing their absolute contempt for the electoral process,” said Paxton, who easily won reelection last year after fending off a Republican primary challenge from George P. Bush, a scion of two former presidents.
The committee has heard testimony from its investigators about several years of alleged abuse of office by Paxton, including that he provided friend and donor Nate Paul, a Texas real estate developer, with FBI files related to the bureau’s investigation into Paul.
The impeachment articles also allege Paxton engaged in bribery when Paul hired a woman with whom Paxton was having an extramarital affair. (Reporting by Brad Brooks in Lubbock, Texas, Daniel Trotta in Carlsbad, California, and Maria Caspani in New York; Editing by Tom Hogue and David Gregorio)