The latest Texas Senate news from The Texas Tribune.
Drew Wicker, Paxton’s former personal assistant, testified at Paxton’s impeachment trial that his boss used four cell phones and ditched his security to meet with Nate Paul. But Wicker also provided Paxton’s lawyer with a chance to attack a central bribery allegation. Full Story
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Watch a livestream of the attorney general’s impeachment trial and get the latest updates as senators weigh his political future. Full Story
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Darren McCarty said the attorney general, his former boss, approached the Mitte Foundation lawsuit with “urgency and anxiety” — and a focus on helping his friend and political donor. Full Story
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Houston lawyer Brandon Cammack said he was excited to help the attorney general’s office with a criminal investigation. But after a whirlwind month, he was fired without payment and felt he’d “gotten the rug pulled out from me.” Full Story
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A Paxton whistleblower testified that the attorney general took an unusual interest in Nate Paul’s litigation against a charity in 2020. Another said Paul benefited from an opinion on foreclosures. Full Story
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The prosecution and the defense were each given 24 hours to present their case and cross examine witnesses. Full Story
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“My heart broke for her,” Katherine “Missy” Cary said of Sen. Angela Paxton, Ken Paxton’s wife. Angela Paxton is disqualified from voting but has to attend the trial. Full Story
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Mark Penley testified that Paxton made numerous negative comments about the Texas Department of Public Safety because of his 2015 securities fraud case. “He doesn’t trust the [DPS] director and he feels like they ran a corrupt investigation on him,” he said. Full Story
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One whistleblower testified that Ken Paxton didn’t trust law enforcement after his own securities fraud indictment. Senators could begin deliberating the impeachment charges later this week. Full Story
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The suspended attorney general’s lawyers focused on disloyalty and attacked evidence, while impeachment managers accused Paxton of excessive and obsessive misconduct. Neither side ignored the politics behind the case. Full Story
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On cross examination, Paxton’s defense attorney launched into whistleblower Ryan Vassar for bringing no physical evidence when he and others reported their boss to the FBI. Vassar said he was a witness and not an investigator. Full Story
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The former top cop for the attorney general’s office testified that complying with real estate investor Nate Paul’s requests would have amounted to criminal activity. Defense attorneys also questioned whistleblowers about their group texts. Full Story
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Ryan Bangert, a former top official under the attorney general, said Paxton allowed a friend and political donor to hijack the state agency, diverting it from its mission to help all Texans. Full Story
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Former attorney general officials testified that Ken Paxton pushed to release confidential FBI records to friend and donor Nate Paul. They also denied defense attorneys’ assertions that they staged a “mutiny.” Full Story
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Jeff Mateer testified that Paxton was so intent on helping Austin real estate investor Nate Paul that he worried the attorney general was being blackmailed. Full Story
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On the second day of the impeachment trial, former officials in the attorney general’s office say Ken Paxton’s relationship with real estate investor Nate Paul raised alarms. Defense attorney accused the witnesses of “staging a coup.” Full Story
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Texans came to the Capitol to witness Tuesday’s proceedings in which the Senate rejected motions to dismiss suspended Attorney General Ken Paxton’s impeachment charges. Full Story
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After senators rejected the suspended attorney general’s bid to dismiss all accusations against him, lawyers for both sides laid out their cases and impeachment managers called their first witness. Full Story
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The suspended attorney general argued that he should have the same protection from testifying as any defendant in a criminal trial. Patrick, acting as trial judge, agreed. Full Story
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The pretrial motions required a majority vote. All but one were rejected by two-thirds of the Senate, suggesting an openness in the chamber to hear the allegations against Paxton. Full Story
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