Instead of distancing himself from Austin real estate developer Nate Paul, impeached Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton appears to be defending himself by saying their relationship — and alleged favors that sprung out of it — doesn’t rise to the level of impeachment.
Paxton — who investigated allegations of misconduct by federal and state authorities who raided Paul’s home several years ago — was impeached by the Texas House on May 27 based in part on the allegations related to Paul, the Dallas Morning News reported.
Paul, the founder and CEO of World Class Holdings and who once controlled a billion-dollar property empire, donated $25,000 to Paxton’s campaign.
Paxton on Friday filed motions to dismiss and to quash evidence, the outlet reported, and within those documents, Paxton’s defense — that using his office assist Paul doesn’t warrant impeachment — appears to take shape.
“If that is a wrong at all, it is not the grave sort of wrong, akin to high treason, that requires immediate correction through impeachment — which is confirmed by the House’s years-long delay in prosecuting this alleged offense,” Paxton’s motion says, according to the outlet.
The impeachment articles against Paxton, who is serving his third term but is currently suspended from duty, include allegations of bribery, obstruction of justice, and abuse of office, many of which revolve around his relationship with Paul. The accusations claim that Paul bribed Paxton with home improvements and a job for Paxton’s alleged mistress in exchange for political favors, which Paxton denies.
A newly disclosed affidavit from former Travis County assistant district attorney Mindy Montford sheds light on Paxton’s involvement in investigating Paul’s complaints against law enforcement agencies involved in a 2019 FBI raid of Paul’s home. Montford said that Paxton personally contacted her to look into the matter and later hired a special prosecutor, Brandon Cammack, to handle the case.That resulted in whistleblower complaints from eight top employees in Paxton’s office and led to Paxton’s impeachment.
Paxton’s defense team also seeks the removal of that $25,000 donation as evidence, claiming it is relatively small and not relevant to the allegations. The team argues that the article of impeachment related to Paxton’s hiring of Cammack should be dismissed due to the incorrect use of terms in the impeachment articles.
Paxton’s impeachment trial in the Senate is scheduled to begin on Sept. 5, with Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick presiding as the judge.
If convicted of any article of impeachment, Paxton could be removed from office, and the Senate might ban him from holding public office in Texas in the future. The deadline for pretrial motions is approaching, and the Senate will vote on any motions to dismiss before the trial commences.
The AG filed motions earlier in the week to dismiss 19 articles of impeachment under the “prior term doctrine,” which provides that any wrongdoing occurred in his second term, before his re-election, the outlet reported.
Paul, meanwhile, has problems of his own.
In June he was charged with eight felony counts of making false statements to mortgage lenders and credit unions for his business. Each felony count of the alleged financial crimes carries a maximum 30-year prison sentence and $1 million fine.
The government is calling for a $172 million monetary judgment, which represents the value of his allegedly fraudulent loans, according to the indictment. The government is also aiming to seize some of Paul’s property.
Upon Paul’s arrest, one of Paxton’s impeachment attorneys speculated that the FBI would try to use charges to get Paul to flip on the state AG.
— Ted Glanzer