As RedState previously reported, the Texas state House voted in May to issue articles of impeachment against Attorney General Ken Paxton -- with the aid of Paxton's fellow Republicans, Bonchie noted.
Now, the Texas Senate, acting as the jury in the impeachment trial of Republican Attorney General Ken Paxton, has voted to acquit him of all impeachment charges. The vote on the 20 charges against Paxton took place on Saturday morning:
The Texas Senate members will vote on articles of impeachment at 10:30 a.m. #txlege pic.twitter.com/uZyFNt3mKy
— Office of the Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick (@LtGovTX) September 16, 2023
The vote was delayed slightly, to 11:10 a.m.
Dallas reporter Natalie Haddad of WFAA shared a primer on the charges -- and how conviction works in this case:
Meanwhile, some reminders:
— Natalie Haddad (@natalieontv) September 16, 2023
Senators are the jurors in this trial.
There’s 16 Articles of Impeachment for them to vote on.
21 votes is what’s needed for conviction.
All it takes is ONE conviction for permanent removal of office. #txlege @wfaa
She added information on the next steps, should Paxton be convicted and removed:
Reminders, pt. 2:
— Natalie Haddad (@natalieontv) September 16, 2023
If convicted, a separate vote is expected to be made on whether Paxton is disqualified from holding state office again.
Conviction also requires 21 votes. #txlege @wfaa
Here's a view of the floor of the Senate:
11:10am. Senators are filing in. Still no sign of Ken Paxton. Sen. Angela Paxton walked in right as I stopped recording — coming in last, she is now at her seat. #txlege @wfaa pic.twitter.com/HM1GLx67xI
— Natalie Haddad (@natalieontv) September 16, 2023
Paxton was acquitted on Article 1,
There was a vast shift in the number of nays on the first three articles and Article 4:
Paxton is ACQUITTED of Article 4:
— Natalie Haddad (@natalieontv) September 16, 2023
2 yay
28 nay #txlege @wfaa
Haddad wrote that the first four charges "accuse Paxton of 'disregard of official duty,'" as was Article 5 (acquitted). Article 6 involved accusations of "acts of retaliation":
Paxton is ACQUITTED of Article 6, Disregard of Official Duty (acts of retaliation).
— Natalie Haddad (@natalieontv) September 16, 2023
14 yay
16 nay
Some whistleblowers are in the Senate gallery. They appear stoic as the final vote is read. #txlege @wfaa pic.twitter.com/WY0DCuGPND
Article 7 related to "misapplication of public resources" and Article 8. again, to "disregard of official duty":
Paxton is ACQUITTED of Article 7, Misapplication of Public Resources.
— Natalie Haddad (@natalieontv) September 16, 2023
14 yay
16 nay#txlege @wfaa
Article 9 and Article 10 were about "constitutional bribery." Paxton was acquitted of both charges, 18-12 and 16-14, respectively.
Articles 11 thru 14 were held in abeyance (will be dealt with at a later time). Moving on to Article 15.
— Natalie Haddad (@natalieontv) September 16, 2023
Paxton is ACQUITTED of Article 15, False Statements in Official Records.
14 yay
16 nay #txlege @wfaa
Article 16, on "conspiracy and attempted conspiracy," was also an acquittal:
Paxton is ACQUITTED of Article 16, Conspiracy and Attempted Conspiracy.
— Natalie Haddad (@natalieontv) September 16, 2023
14 yay
16 nay#txlege @wfaa
Article 17, Misappropriation of Public Resources (acquitted).
#PaxtonVerdict
— Sand (@sandiek64) September 16, 2023
14 acquittals down for AG Paxton 2 to go
This is for article 18#PaxtonTrial
Republicans voting to impeach AG Paxton on most charges are Robert Nichols district3 & Kelly Hancock @KHancock4TX district9 #RememberThem
Paxton is ACQUITTED of Article 18, Dereliction of Duty.
— Natalie Haddad (@natalieontv) September 16, 2023
14 yay
16 nay #txlege @wfaa
The final two charges:
- Article 19, unfitness for office.(acquitted),
- Article 20, on abuse of public trust, was 16-14 for the nays (acquitted).
A final vote was made on the four charges held in abeyance (passage with a simple 16-vote majority), which the Senate voted not to convict on.
BREAKING: Ken Paxton has been ACQUITTED on all 16 Articles of Impeachment. He can now return to office as the State Attorney General.
— Natalie Haddad (@natalieontv) September 16, 2023
This ends a two week trial where, in May, the GOP-led Texas House accused him of bribery, corruption, and being unfit for office. #txlege @wfaa https://t.co/njiZQnr1tE
Read the full text of the impeachment charges here (.pdf).
As this is a breaking story, RedState will provide further details as they become available.
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