Texas State Representative Brian Harrison has called for House Speaker Dade Phelan to “step down immediately” following the acquittal of Attorney General Ken Paxton on all articles of impeachment. Harrison’s demand comes on the heels of a statement released by Paxton earlier this year, in which he accused Phelan of being “unworthy of Texans’ trust.”
In a scathing statement, Rep. Harrison wrote, “Speaker Phelan must step down now for empowering this Democrat effort while killing Republican priorities.” He continued, “I applaud the Texas Senate for conducting a fair and transparent trial and for reaching a verdict that was obviously correct given the shocking lack of evidence.”
Harrison accused the Texas House leadership of misleading and pressuring Republicans to join a Democrat-led effort to impeach Paxton, thereby tarnishing the reputation of the entire Texas House. He also called for an investigation by the State Auditor’s office to determine how much taxpayer money was wasted on the impeachment proceedings.
Read his full statement:
I applaud the Texas Senate for conducting a fair and transparent trial and for reaching a verdict that was obviously correct given the shocking lack of evidence. The Texas House leadership, who mislead and pressured Republicans to join a Democrat effort to overturn an election, has, possibly irreparably, disgraced itself and tarnished the reputation of the entire Texas House.
The staggering incompetence and dishonest conduct on display by the leadership of the Texas House, House General Investigating Committee, and Board of Managers must be repudiated.
Before trial, House leadership said, in writing, that Attorney General Paxton demonstrated a “shocking pattern of abuse and criminality” and “the evidence we found was conclusive.” These were either outright lies, or the House Managers were so blinded by their desire to railroad a political enemy that they failed to take time to learn the truth. We now know that much of what was presented as fact by members of the House General Investigation Committee were demonstratable falsehoods. Yet many House Republicans relied on these assertions and voted to impeach.
The next generation is on the line; with every freedom and liberty being eroded.
Yet instead of securing the border, passing school choice, banning COVID mandates, fixing our grid and energy market, reining in emergency executive powers, cutting spending, ending property taxes, deregulating our economy, or stopping communist governments from buying Texas land, the Speaker of the House prioritized the impeachment of a recently re-elected Attorney General who has proven he is up to the most important task of our time: fighting the out of control federal government, which seeks to destroy our rights, our freedoms, our liberties, our state sovereignty, and the Constitution.
For that reason, in addition to his appointment of liberal Democrats to chair powerful committees and his presiding over the House while clearly unable to execute the duties of his office, I am calling on Speaker Dade Phelan to step down immediately.
Also, since the House General Investigating Committee claimed it was so outraged by a potential $3 million appropriation to fund Paxton’s settlement agreement that led to impeachment, and because I also care about protecting tax dollars, I am requesting an investigation by the State Auditor’s office to determine exactly how much tax money was spent to conduct this impeachment in both chambers. Texans deserve to know exactly how much of their money was wasted on this disgraceful and fruitless exercise.
If “as goes Texas, so goes the nation,” Texas must lead in the defense of liberty. If we do not, then, as President Ronald Reagan said in 1964, “history will record with the greatest astonishment that those who had the most to lose did the least to prevent its happening.”
In May, The Gateway Pundit reported that Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton on Tuesday called on Republican House Speaker Dade Phelan to resign and accused him of being drunk in the Capitol.
Here is a video of Dade Phelan where it appears he is inebriated:
This is video from last night in the Texas House of Representatives where it appears that TX House Speaker Dade Phelan is either really drunk or having a stroke. pic.twitter.com/dbSG7AO30r
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) May 20, 2023
“After much consideration, it is with profound disappointment that I call on Speaker Dade Phelan to resign at the end of this legislative session. Texans were dismayed to witness his performance presiding over the Texas House in a state of apparent debilitating intoxication. His conduct has negatively impacted the legislative process and constitutes a failure to live up to his duty to the public,” Paxton said in a statement.
“Texans were relying on the House to pass critical conservative priorities including protecting the integrity of our elections and preventing Chinese spies from controlling Texas land. His failures as Speaker have created a credibility crisis for all Republican candidates and for our entire Party. While I hope Speaker Phelan will get the help he needs, he has proven himself unworthy of Texans’ trust and incapable of leading the Texas House,” the Texas Attorney General added.
AG Ken Paxton condemned the RINOs in the Texas House the next day.
“The liberal leadership of the Texas House has routinely killed conservative legislation including important bills which would help secure our border and protect the integrity of our elections. They have demonstrated nothing but contempt for the traditional values of conservative Texans,” Paxton said in a statement.
“It is not surprising that a committee appointed by liberal Speaker Dade Phelan would seek to disenfranchise Texas voters and sabotage my work as Attorney General. The false testimony of highly partisan Democrat lawyers with the goal of manipulating and misleading the public is reprehensible. Every allegation is easily disproved, and I look forward to continuing my fight for conservative Texas values,” he added.
On the third day, Texas lawmakers on the GOP-led House General Investigating Committee unanimously recommended impeaching Attorney General Ken Paxton.
