AUSTIN – A House ethics panel is investigating the circumstances of a $3.3 million plea agreement that Attorney General Ken Paxton reached with four former employees who have accused him of corruption, it announced this Tuesday the spokesman’s office.
The panel “is conducting a thorough examination of the events surrounding the firing of the whistleblowers, as well as Ken Paxton’s alleged illegal conduct,” said Cait Wittman, spokeswoman for House Speaker Dade Phelan. He added that the investigation began in March.
The revelation came hours after Paxton accused Phelan of being drunk on duty and called for the speaker’s resignation in an explosive statement, an unusual public condemnation by one top Republican against another.
Wittman said the motives and timing behind Paxton’s moves were obvious: “Mr. Paxton’s statement today amounts to little more than a last-ditch effort to save face.”
Political points
Officials at Paxton’s agency did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The public outburst comes after weeks of growing tension between Phelan and Paxton, two of the state’s most powerful leaders.
Phelan has publicly criticized the $3.3 million settlement, saying taxpayers should not foot the bill. The Legislature is poised to block funding.
In their lawsuit, the whistleblowers alleged they were fired after going to law enforcement with allegations that Paxton committed bribery and abuse of office. They accused Paxton of directing agency resources to help a campaign donor, who they said got a kitchen remodel and a job for a woman he allegedly had an affair with.
Paxton, a third-term Republican, has denied all wrongdoing. The FBI is investigating the allegations but has not filed charges.
The House Investigative Committee is scheduled to reconvene Wednesday morning to discuss the investigation into Paxton’s agency.
Earlier Tuesday, Paxton offered no evidence to support his statement calling for Phelan to resign.
His criticism comes after a video circulated on social media in recent days showing Phelan, a Republican from Beaumont, slurring his words toward the end of a 14-hour session Friday.
Online critics slammed the speaker being “wasted”, while others wrote in chalk until exhaustion.
“Texans were dismayed to witness his performance presiding over the Texas House in a state of apparent debilitating intoxication,” he wrote. “While I hope Speaker Phelan will get the help he needs, he has proven himself unworthy of the trust of Texans and unfit to lead the Texas House.”
He asked the same House investigative committee to investigate the matter.
Phelan declined to discuss the allegations Tuesday. “I’m sorry. I’m not going to answer any questions about that,” he told the House.
At the same time, the General House Investigative Committee convened a closed-door meeting.
In the end, Speaker Andrew Murr, R-Junction, publicly disclosed the investigation into Paxton’s agency. The committee authorized a subpoena against an unnamed man referred to only as John Doe No. 6 and “entity A,” which Murr confirmed was the attorney general’s office. The committee also approved the issuance of a “preservation letter” to be sent to the agency “to ensure that all evidence relevant to the committee’s investigation is not destroyed or concealed.”
“You, your employees, your agents, and any other person or entity over whom you exercise care, custody, or control are similarly notified to preserve all documents related to the whistleblowers’ termination and the alleged conduct unlawful in which you and your office,” Murr’s letter to the agency stated, according to a copy provided by Wittman.
The General Investigative Committee is made up of five lawmakers who can investigate complaints of misconduct, embezzlement, embezzlement, abuse of office, incompetence and workplace misconduct by state officials and employees.
Earlier this month, the House expelled North Texas Republican Rep. Bryan Slaton over alleged sexual misconduct with a 19-year-old legislative aide. Slaton also obstructed a House investigation into his misconduct, the House ethics panel found. His expulsion was the first for a member in nearly a century.
