Area Lawmakers Play Prominent Role in Paxton Impeachment
State Rep. Morgan Meyer (R-University Park) is among the 12 representatives newly appointed to the Texas House impeachment board of managers that delivered articles of impeachment Monday against Attorney General Ken Paxton to the state Senate.
The others on the impeachment board of managers are Reps. Charlie Geren (R-Fort Worth); Joe Moody (D-El Paso); Terry Canales (D-Edinburg); Jeff Leach (R-Plano); Oscar Longoria (D-Mission); Briscoe Cain (R-Deer Park); Cody Vasut (R-Angleton); David Spiller (R-Jacksboro); and Erin Gamez (D-Brownsville), NBCDFW reports.
The House voted to impeach Paxton Saturday in a 121-23 vote after an investigative committee brought forth 20 articles of impeachment against him, including bribery and abuse of public trust. The investigation started in March after Paxton and his agency agreed to pay $3.3 million to settle a lawsuit by four of his former deputies, the Texas Tribune reported.
Paxton was first indicted on securities fraud charges in 2015, the Tribune reported.
The Senate approved a resolution setting the date to convene as a court of impeachment no later than Aug. 28. Until then, Paxton is suspended from office. Gov. Greg Abbott May 31 appointed attorney John Scott, who formerly served as Texas Secretary of State, as interim attorney general.
“We will manage this process with the weight and reverence that it deserves and requires,” House General Investigating Committee Chair Andrew Murr (R-Junction) said. “This is about facts and the evidence. It is not about politics.”
After the vote, though, Paxton called the impeachment “a politically motivated sham” and said he looks “forward to a quick resolution in the Senate.”
A committee of seven senators, which includes Royce West, D-Dallas, will meet on June 20 to adopt rules for the impeachment proceedings — the first of their kind in nearly 50 years, the Dallas Morning News reported.
