The Texas Senate has just put forth the rules and the date of state Attorney General Ken Paxton's impeachment trial.
According to Just the News, the Texas Senate did so on Wednesday by passing Senate Resolution 35 and Senate Resolution 36.
Senate Resolution 35 - the Rules of Impeachment of Warren Kenneth Paxton, Jr - passed 25 to 3. The resolution came from the Special Committee to Recommend Rules and Procedures for Court of Impeachment. Committee members are said to have debated these rules for some 30 hours.
Senate Resolution 36 - which passed 28 to 2 - regards the date of the impeachment trial: Sept. 5, 2023.
In late May 2023, the Texas House of Representatives voted, 121 to 23, to impeach Paxton on some 20 articles of impeachment, including the acceptance of bribes.
CBS News details the accusations that have been made against Paxton. Here's one example:
Allegations include that Paxton used employees of his office to do work that benefitted [real estate developer Nate] Paul and that he misused public information, including not publicly disclosing he had provided information to Paul that would benefit him. The articles of impeachment allege that Paul, a campaign donor, paid to renovate Paxton's house, and Paxton requested Paul hire a woman with whom Paxton was allegedly in a relationship.
Paxton has vehemently disputed the accusations, calling the impeachment effort "a politically motivated sham."
Paxton has received the backing of several Republicans, including former President Donald Trump and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX).
As a result of this impeachment, Paxton has been temporarily removed from the attorney general position. Next up is the impeachment trial, which will determine whether this temporary removal will be changed to a permanent removal.
Senate Resolution 35 contains 31 rules that will govern the impeachment trial of Paxton.
ABC News reports:
The rules also allow Ken Paxton's defense to be heard and have “access to the floor of the Senate at all times” and “be provided seats on the floor of the Senate, except when the court of impeachment is in closed session.” Each side will be given 24 total hours for evidence presentation.
Also included in Senate Resolution 35 is a rule that stops Paxton's wife from voting on whether to convict her husband. Paxton's wife is Angela Paxton, and she is a Texas state senator who represents state Senate District 8.
A two-thirds majority of the Texas Senate will be needed to permanently remove Paxton from office. At the time of this writing, it is unclear whether the impeachment effort has such support.
Even though Paxton's wife will not be allowed to vote on her husband's impeachment, she will be present at the proceeding and her seat will be included in the calculation to determine whether the two-thirds majority was met.
