AUSTIN (CBSNewsTexas.com) – In this episode of Eye on Politics (air date: June 9), political reporter Jack Fink covers the federal charges filed against former President Donald Trump and the race for the White House, which included stops in North Texas of two Republican candidates. He also continued to stay on top of the two big stories reverberating around the Texas Capitol: the impeachment of Attorney General Ken Paxton and new criminal charges filed against an Austin developer linked to Paxton, and the political showdown between Gov. Greg Abbott and Lt.-Gov. Dan Patrick on how to offer property tax relief to Texans.
Each week, CBS News Texas political reporter Jack Fink breaks down some of the biggest political stories grabbing headlines in North Texas and beyond. Watch the latest episode of Eye on Politics in the video player above and catch new episodes live every Thursday and Friday at 7:00 PM on CBS News Texas.
Former President Donald Trump has accused
Former President Donald Trump has announced and CBS News has confirmed that he has been indicted by a federal grand jury in Miami over his handling of sensitive government documents after leaving office.
Friday afternoon, the 44-page federal the impeachment against Trump was unleashedwhich details the charges the former president faces related to his handling of sensitive government records after leaving the White House.
Developer linked to Ken Paxton arrested on federal charges
Developer from Austin Nate Paulwho is related to suspended Attorney General Ken Paxton and is listed in the articles of impeachment against him, has been arrested by the FBI on federal charges.
He was charged on Friday on eight counts of making false statements while applying for loans to mortgage lenders in 2017 and 2018.
Paxton has also been under investigation by federal authorities since the fall of 2020.
Removal of Ken Paxton
Attorney General Ken Paxton’s attorneys spoke out for the first time this week, saying their client is innocent and they don’t believe the evidence against him is strong.
It is up to Texas senators to hear and weigh all the evidence against Paxton and decide whether he should be removed as attorney general permanently.
Paxton has been suspended without pay from the Texas House dismissed him on Memorial Day weekend.
He is accused of abusing his position and power to help himself and a campaign donor.
Among the 20 articles of impeachment: abuse of public trust, unfit for office, dereliction of duty and constitutional bribery.
Attorneys prosecuting the case spoke at a news conference last week.
As for Paxton, he and his lawyers have adamantly denied any wrongdoing.
Paxton’s attorneys held their press conference Wednesday at the Texas Republican Party headquarters.
A party spokesman told CBS News Texas that his office is open to all elected Republicans.
The impeachment trial will begin on August 28, but senators will soon decide on an exact date along with the trial’s rules and procedures.
No word yet on whether Paxton’s wife, Sen. Angela Paxton, will retire.
Political focus on property tax relief
The political confrontation between Governor Greg Abbott and Lt. Governor Dan Patrick on how to give Texans property tax relief continued into its second week.
Neither man backs down.
Lawmakers have already agreed to give homeowners $17.6 billion in aid, more than half of the state’s budget surplus.
But until the House and Senate pass the exact same bill, you and other homeowners and business owners won’t see lower property tax bills.
Under the bill passed by the House and backed by Gov. Abbott, the state would cut property taxes used to pay for public schools and instead use more state funding, such as sales tax and surplus money.
His plan is to continue doing this until the school districts’ maintenance and operations or M&O portion of your property tax bill is reduced to zero over a 10-year period.
The Senate plan does not call for phasing out the school property tax.
But it includes a provision to lower the amount of property taxes and raise the state sales tax to pay for public schools.
It also increases the homestead exemption for homeowners, which almost doubles their savings, at least initially.
Governor Abbott, however, said the state had tried this strategy before.
The lieutenant governor said the school property tax cannot be eliminated despite what the governor and others say.
And Gov. Greg Abbott said until there’s a solution, he’ll keep calling lawmakers into special session after special session until they provide property tax relief to Texans.
Two Republican presidential candidates visit North Texas amid a growing field of competition for the nomination
The race for the White House came to Texas for two Republican candidates.
They include former South Carolina Gov. and U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley, who attended a fundraiser at a Dallas home Wednesday evening and campaigned in West Texas Thursday morning .
At a news conference in Stanton, Texas, on Thursday morning, Haley defended the oil and gas industry and promised to increase America’s energy production. “Now is the time to realize that energy security is national security. First, we’re going to stop demonizing energy producers, and we’re going to empower them to help us. We want to make sure that we stop all the green subsidies, take out – those on the way. We want to speed up the granting of permits so that these pipelines can pass faster.”
UT Arlington political science professor Rebecca Deen said Haley’s visit to West Texas is eye-opening. “This tells me that he is trying to consolidate his good faith among the most conservative of the Republican electorate.”
Another Republican vying for the party’s nomination, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, also attended a fundraiser in downtown Fort Worth, where he was seen leaving Thursday morning.
He then headed to another event at a house in Dallas and later held a similar event in Houston.
Deen said, “Texas has deep pockets. There are viable candidates who will come around to fundraise, not just for real money, but to increase their prestige among this donor elite.”
They are among 10 Republican candidates, also including former President Donald Trump, his former Vice President Mike Pence, South Carolina Senator Tim Scott and former New Jersey Governor Chris Christie.
Deen said, “There’s dissatisfaction among the Republican electorate. It’s interesting that a former president is rallying so many opponents.”
Analysis of the Republican presidential primaries
We spoke with UT Arlington political science professor Dr. Rebecca Deen about the Republican Presidential Primary.
Jack Fink
