Solemn oaths, not guilty plea, spirited debate start Ken Paxton’s impeachment trial

By Gromer Jeffers Jr.

AUSTIN — The impeachment trial of Ken Paxton is underway but with far less fanfare than expected for an event of such historic magnitude.

Tuesday’s scene in the Senate chamber, now a courtroom, was as expected.

Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick — the judge in this rare proceeding — eschewed a judicial robe for a navy, three-piece suit. And in a fashion more solemn than a typical trial, 30 senators took an oath to fairly serve as jurors. Paxton sat between his lawyers and through one of them issued a plea of “not guilty.”

The scene around the Capitol was unexpectedly more subdued than inside the Senate chamber. A rally of pro-Paxton supporters that was advertised on social media drew about five people at the start. However, a significant pro-Paxton contingent was inside the chamber, wearing T-shirts and stickers to show their support.

Fran Rhodes, president of the conservative group called the True Texas Project, said she expected 20 to 30 people from her group to show up as the day passed. But instead of a rally, they brought letters to senators asking them to dismiss the articles against Paxton, mainly because of the process in which he was impeached.

“I thought there would have been some activity at the state Capitol,” said Republican political consultant Vinny Minchillo, who is based in Plano. “I’m very surprised that no one’s there.”

Still, the historic significance of the event is inescapable.

Paxton is the first statewide elected official to be impeached since 1917, when 21 articles were brought against James “Pa” Ferguson, who was convicted on 10 articles and removed from office.

In May the Texas House referred 20 articles against Paxton, including allegations of bribery and misconduct. On Tuesday’s opening day, the Senate heard pretrial motions to dismiss the trial, which were rejected.

“It is a rarity when an elected official has crossed so many lines and allegedly broken the law so seriously that this barely used procedure for removing someone has to be considered,” said Jeremi Suri, a professor of history and public affairs at the University of Texas. “Whether or not he will be convicted will be determined by the Republican Senate, but it’s already extraordinary that his own party in the House impeached him.”

Suri and most other analysts had predicted the first day of the impeachment trial would bring contrasting views — a tightly controlled courtly proceeding inside the Senate chamber and a more rollicking scene outside in the Capitol Rotunda with supporters and opponents of the suspended attorney general.

It didn’t happen.

The lack of action outside the Senate chamber is indicative of the public’s view, or apathy, about Paxton and the trial. Less than 150 people sat in the Senate gallery, according to officials giving out morning passes. At one point there appeared to be more press than spectators.

Though it’s difficult for most Texans to leave work or home life to attend an Austin trial, a bigger-named politician, perhaps, would have drawn more interest.

Rhodes said she drove four hours to the Capitol because it was important to set the tone for Day 1 of the trial.

“We have been opposing this impeachment from the get go, not because of anything Ken Paxton has or has not done, but because of the process that was implemented to get us to this point,” said Rhodes, a Fort Worth conservative. “I thought it was important to be here on Day 1 just to send the message, but we can’t be here every day.”

Sen. Angela Paxton, R-McKinney and the wife of Ken Paxton, was on the Senate floor, but is recused from voting. Before the start of the trial she waved to supporters in the gallery.

A poll by the Texas Politics Project shows that 35% of voters didn’t know or had no opinion on whether Paxton’s impeachment was justified. The survey showed 47% felt the impeachment was with merit, while 18% said it was not justified. The poll revealed that 43% of GOP respondents were undecided on whether the impeachment should have occurred.

“This is an opportunity for a very public display of institutions functioning the way they are designed to function, and elected officials living up to the requirements of the Constitution,” said Jim Henson, director of the Texas Politics Project at the University of Texas, before the trial began. “This is a spectacle, an institutional moment and political theater that we have not seen in anybody’s lifetime.”

On Tuesday, Henson noted that the public interest in the trial could increase as the trial picked up steam.

Some of the state’s most high-profile lawyers are arguing both sides of the case.

The prosecution is led by Dick DeGuerin and Rusty Hardin. The defense team is paced by high-profile lawyers Tony Buzbee and Dan Cogdell.

“It’s the day after Labor Day and not a great mobilization day for anybody,” Henson said. “When we start seeing witnesses and arguments by these expensive and golden-throated lawyers, there’s a chance that attention will tick up.”

While solemn, the day in the Senate courtroom did bring some humor.

The trial attracted spectators from inside and outside of Texas.

Dave Hoos, a Colorado resident who happened to be visiting the Capitol, sat in the afternoon session of the trial.

“It’s fascinating to me that he’s being impeached by his own party,” Hoos said. “By the way, this is a beautiful Capitol building.”

Dave Storgaard, a Temple retiree, traveled to Texas with a friend to see the trial.

“I knew about Paxton, but I didn’t know the gravity of the proceedings,” he said. “The process could be streamlined a little, but it’s interesting.”

This story, originally published in The Dallas Morning News, is reprinted as part of a collaborative partnership between The Dallas Morning News and Texas Metro News. The partnership seeks to boost coverage of Dallas’ communities of color, particularly in southern Dallas.