Should the 31 men and women who comprise the Texas Senate reveal to the public how they intend to vote on whether to convict the state’s attorney general of crimes he allegedly committed?
With emphasis, I want to say “no!”
AG Ken Paxton is set to stand trial no later than Aug. 28 on 20 articles of impeachment that the Texas House zoomed through in the final days of the 2023 Legislature.
As the Texas Tribune reports, we can expect a “much different rhythm” in the Legislature’s other chamber.
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick leads the Senate and he’s keeping his own thoughts on Paxton’s guilt or innocence to himself, as he should.
“Don’t ask me any more questions because I can’t answer them,” Patrick said during an event with the Texas Public Policy Foundation. “Look at me like a judge before a case and look at our senators like that. Be respectful of their space and time. This is very serious. There are very serious people, and the Senate is going to do our job in a professional way.”
Ken Paxton impeachment moves to Texas Senate, where unknowns await | The Texas Tribune
There you go. The Senate is acting as a jury. The Legislature has hired two legal hot shots — Dick DeGuerin and Rusty Hardin — to lead the prosecution.
I want there to be some suspense prior to the convening of the trial. For senators to blab and blather on their predisposition before they deliver a verdict would be prejudicial and would signal that the fix is in — either way — in what Patrick as described as a “very serious” proceeding.
Let the process move forward.