Texas GOP country parties denounce Speaker Dale Phelan, primary challenger announces

Four Texas counties have come out against the state GOP and their impeachment of Attorney General Ken Paxton. Collin County, Atascosa County, Parker County, and Comal County Republicans are planning to primary conservative representatives who support the impeachment, calling it "illegal" and a "sham."

These grassroots activists and local GOP leaders are already primarying House Speaker Dale Phelan, who presided over the session on impeachment.

Jefferson County GOP Precinct Chair Shilo Platts is meeting Phelan in the contest for his seat, and this challenge is part of a grassroots effort by conservative Texans to take a stand against Paxton's impeachment.

"Southeast Texans not only deserve to have a choice in their State Representative, something we haven't had here in District 21 for years, but the voters deserve a true Texan who is not for sale, and will not be purchased by the woke, liberal special interest groups seeking to control Texas."

"We can do better," Platts said, "and we will do better in delivering true, uncompromised, Texas-first legislative priorities through the house and onto Governor Abbott's desk."

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton has been wildly popular among conservatives in the Lone Star State. He's taken a stand against child sex changes, favors parental rights, sued the Biden administration over their lax and destructive border policies, and has worked to defend the state against woke ideologies and policies.

Paxton was impeached in the House at the hands of his conservative colleagues after being slapped with 20 articles of impeachment under state house speaker Dade Phelan in May. The articles of impeachment now move on to the Senate. In Collin County, all five state GOP representatives voted to impeach Paxton. Despite their vote, voters in Collin County rallied around Paxton after the vote.

One supporter said, "We cannot continue on with this, the people have to stand up against tyranny." That is the message Collin County Republicans are itching to get across, and they are intending to primary those who voted to impeach Paxton.

As a result, Phelan is now being primaried in his own district. Phelan has held his seat since 2014, and in recent years, he hasn't been challenged at all. In addition to presiding over the impeachment, Phelan has appointed Democrats to key committee chairs in the Texas house, and did not make good on passing bills to prevent Chinese interest from buying up Texan land, school choice, or securing the porous border.

Phelan's popularity among his constituents has dipped since the charges leveled against Paxton. In January, at the beginning of the legislative session, 40 percent of voters in Phelan's district said they supported him, with 34 percent looking for a contender and 26 percent unsure. Now, since the impeachment, 48 percent of those in Phelan's district said they would cast their vote for a conservative opponent to Phelan, whereas 24 said they would support him.

Each of the four counties have drafted resolutions opposing the impeachment, and vowing not to support those who are backing the ouster of Paxton. 

The Republicans in each county allege that the impeachment "failed to comply with applicable law and historical precedent." Witnesses, they say, were not placed under oath before giving their testimony, as required by law. They state that some of the 20 charges were for incidents prior to Paxton's taking office, and that Paxton had not been allowed to defend himself.

They resolved to condemn the process as "unprecedented and an offense to Due Process and the Rule of Law," and asked Lt. Governor Dan Patrick and the Texas Senate to return the articles to the House.

The grassroots Republicans state that there was "no due process/diligence as part of the investigation." They called for "due diligence to be conducted at this time in full view of the Senate and House with at least 15% of the House members NOT voting YES included in the questioning of relevant witnesses." 

They resolved that the allegations be dismissed outright and that the Senate "repudiate the Articles of Impeachment submitted by the Texas House of Representatives." Part of their complaint is that "the members of the Texas House were asked to cast their vote with less than 48 hours of the notice of the impeachment proceedings."

"Ken Paxton," they said, is "one of the most conservative and effective Attorney Generals in the country."

Republican Andrew Murr brought the articles of impeachment to the floor, alleging corruption, bribery, abuse of office, retaliation, and additional offenses. Many in the GOP were displeased with the charges having been brought at all, such as John Smithee, who called it a "hang them now and judge them later policy."

After the charges, Paxton took aim at Phelan, saying "Texas voters now know that Speaker Phelan and the corrupt politicians he controls are more focused on political retribution against conservatives than the welfare of the people. Instead of passing critical legislation that would strengthen our border, or stop the Chinese Communist Party from buying up Texas land, they chose to spend the final days of the legislative session smearing me."

Paxton charged "Phelan's coalition of Democrats and liberal Republicans" of being in "lockstep with the Biden Administration, the abortion industry, anti-gun zealots, and woke corporations to sabotage" his work as Attorney General."

Resolutions against impeach... by Libby Emmons