Stability or chaos: The turnover rate in the Biden vs. Trump Cabinets speaks for itself

Posted on by Charles Jay

The success or failure of a presidency can often depend on the people chosen for Cabinet-level posts. President Joe Biden has just passed the three-year mark of his first term. His administration has been a model of stability and competence. This follows the four years of chaos and incompetence that marked Donald Trump’s miserable administration.

And that point is clear when you look at the turnover rate in both administrations among the 15 Cabinet members in the line of succession for the presidency as well as the nine additional Cabinet-level positions.

RELATED STORY: Republicans actually published a blueprint for dismantling our democracy. It's called Project 2025

Kathryn Dunn Tenpas, a visiting fellow in governance studies at the Brookings Institution, has written detailed analyses on overall staff turnover in the Trump administration and the Biden administration. There’s Biden, who kept his promise to make his Cabinet the most diverse in U.S. history with more women and members of color, all of whom had considerable political experience. His Cabinet includes Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, the first openly gay person to be a Cabinet-level secretary, and Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, the first Native American to serve in a president’s Cabinet.

And so far only one Cabinet member has resigned—Labor Secretary Marty Walsh, the former Boston mayor, who stepped down in March 2023. A longtime Boston Bruins fan, Walsh accepted an offer to become executive director of the NHL Players’ Association. Julie Su is serving as acting labor secretary because the Senate has yet to confirm her nomination.

And just two of the nine additional Cabinet-level positions have seen change. Longtime Biden aide Ron Klain stepped down as White House chief of staff at the mid-point of Biden’s term, and was immediately replaced by Jeff Zients, who effectively ran Biden’s COVID-19 response operation. He remains in the post.

The second is Cecilia Rouse, the first Black woman to serve as chair of the Council of Economic Advisers, resigned in March 2023 to return to Princeton University and resume her work as a professor of economics and public affairs. She was replaced by longtime Biden economic adviser Jared Bernstein.

That means that 21 of 24 of Biden’s original appointees remain in their positions heading into the fourth year of his term. National Journal White House correspondent George E. Condon Jr. wrote:

In his three years in office, the president has been determined to keep his top team mostly intact, and that team in turn has been determined to avoid the leaks, backstabbing, and controversy that have led to purges and makeovers in almost all the nine presidencies Biden has witnessed in his half century in Washington.

A National Journal review of past administrations found that one has to go back 171 years to find a more stable first-term administration.”

Condon wrote that Biden’s 87.5% retention rate in these top positions is topped in U.S. presidential history only by Franklin Pierce, elected in 1852, whose seven-member Cabinet remained intact during his four-year term. Condon added:

The contrast is particularly sharp compared with Biden's predecessor, Donald Trump, whose Cabinet chaos was matched by no president in almost two centuries. By the end of his term in office, only four of Trump’s original 15 Cabinet members remained and only one of nine Cabinet-level appointees had survived. His retention rate of 20.8 percent exceeded only the president whose picture he brought to the Oval Office—Andrew Jackson, who had only one of six Cabinet members remaining at the end of his first term.

In January 2023, midway through Biden’s term. Sen. Chris Coons of Delaware told NBC News, “Not one single member of the Cabinet has left in disgrace, is writing a tell-all book or has bad-mouthed the president. There are no leaks, no backbiting, nothing.”

Only recently has there been a major controversy surrounding a member of Biden’s Cabinet which is under investigation: Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin was criticized for his failure to notify the White House, Congress, and the media about his hospitalization resulting from complications related to a procedure to treat prostate cancer.

And House Republicans have scheduled a Homeland Security Committee meeting for Jan. 30 to mark up articles of impeachment for Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas for his handling of border policy. Democrats have accused House Republicans of launching a “baseless political attack” instead of focusing on a bipartisan solution to the immigration crisis, Axios reported.

Presidential historian Lindsay Chervinsky, author of “The Cabinet: George Washington and the Creation of an American Institution,” told National Journal:

“Trump’s Cabinet chaos reflected the broader chaos in government. It’s a reason why most people elected Biden. It was because they felt like he would bring calmness and stability back to government and back to the nation.”

She added that this stability is one of the reasons why Biden “has been able to be effective.”

“Up to now, he’s not spending political capital or time on having to get new candidates appointed or finding replacements. It frees up mental space and bandwidth and political capital to get things done,” she said.

Trump promised to bring “the best and the brightest” to his administration. He also said he would run his administration like his business. Unfortunately, as shown in a New York civil lawsuit in which Trump faces up to $370 million in penalties, there was persistent fraud in his business dealings.

And, as The New York Times noted, Trump “created a  cabinet of mostly wealthy, white men with limited experience in government, mirroring himself.”

Vox wrote in May 2017:

CEOs don’t persuade people; they dictate. And they fire those who refuse to carry out their demands. Even more importantly, a CEO of a privately held company (like the Trump organization) operates like a king over his personal fiefdom. His employees work for him; they have no higher obligation to shareholders.

And three years later, during the 2020 campaign, The Hill wrote about just how tumultuous the Trump administration had been:

Trump operates like the federal government is just a backdrop for a never-ending episode of “The Apprentice,” except that he dominates every scene. And, just like “The Apprentice,” Trump is constantly trying to make every scene more outrageous than the one before. After all, dull is death in the TV business.

Trump fired some Cabinet members he considered disloyal or incompetent by his standards. Others resigned because of differences over policy issues.

The turnover in the Trump administration began less than a month after his inauguration when national security adviser Michael Flynn was forced to resign following claims he misled the administration over his communications with Russia’s ambassador. In December 2020, Trump pardoned Flynn, who had twice pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI.

Trump then ran through three more national security advisers—H.R. McMaster, John Bolton, and Robert O’ Brien. Bolton, who was fired over policy differences, has warned that Trump could do  “irreparable” damage to the country if elected president again.

There were four White House chiefs of staff under Trump: Reince Priebus, John Kelly, Mick Mulvaney, and Mark Meadows.    

Meadows was among the 19 people indicted with Trump in the criminal racketeering case brought by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis for allegedly conspiring to overturn the 2020 election results in Georgia. 

Kelly became an outspoken critic of Trump. CNN reported that Kelly told friends this about Trump:

“The depths of his (Trump’s) dishonesty is just astounding to me. The dishonesty, the transactional nature of every relationship, though it’s more pathetic than anything else. He is the most flawed person I have ever met in my life,” the retired Marine general has told friends, CNN has learned.

Trump fired Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, the former Exxon CEO, after he called the president “a moron.” Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin called Trump “an idiot,” while Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said the president had “the understanding of a fifth or six grader,” according to Bob Woodward’s book “Fear: Trump in the White House.” Mnuchin was one of the few Cabinet members to survive four years in the Trump administration.  

Three of Trump’s Cabinet members left after being linked to scandals involving misuse of government funds for personal purposes: Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price,  Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke, and Secretary of Veterans Affairs David Shulkin. Zinke, of Montana, is now a member of the House GOP caucus.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions was forced out in November 2018, because he recused himself and appointed a special counsel, Robert  Mueller, to investigate Russia’s interference in the 2016 election. His successor, William Barr, resigned in December 2020 after debunking Trump’s baseless claims of widespread fraud in the presidential  election.

And then, with just weeks left in Trump’s term, two more Cabinet members—Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao and Education Secretary Betsy DeVos—were among the administration officials who resigned after the mob of Trump supporters stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6. Trump has since derisively referred to Chao, the wife of Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell, in social media posts as “Coco Chow,” which she criticized as an anti-Asian slur.

In July 2023, NBC News reached out to 44 of the dozens of people who served in Cabinet-level positions during Trump’s term, not all of whom responded. A total of four publicly said they support his reelection bid. Several were coy about where they stood. And there were some who “outright oppose his bid for the GOP nomination or are adamant that they don’t want him back in power.”

“I have made clear that I strongly oppose Trump for the nomination and will not endorse Trump,” former Attorney General Bill Barr told NBC News. Asked how he would vote if the general election pits Trump against President Joe Biden, a Democrat, Barr said: “I’ll jump off that bridge when I get to it.”

At the time, some former Cabinet members told NBC that they were supporting other candidates in the Republican primary. Former Vice President Mike Pence and Nikki Haley, who served as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, challenged Trump for the nomination. Haley is hanging on in the primary race by a thread.

It’s not clear how many of these former Cabinet members will join the stampede within the GOP to endorse Trump now that he’s won the first two nominating contests in Iowa and New Hampshire, especially since he’s been acting like a Mafia don in threatening Republicans who oppose him.

But on the third anniversary of the Jan. 6 insurrection, former Defense Secretary Mark Esper, who was fired by Trump on Nov. 9, 2020, issued this warning about the former president in an interview on CNN.

“I do regard him as a threat to democracy, democracy as we know it, our institutions, our political culture, all those things that make America great and have defined us as, you know, the oldest democracy on this planet,” Esper said.

RELATED STORY: Loyal, angry, and ready to break the law: How Trump plans to staff his Cabinet

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What the Cheney-Stefanik clash shows about the GOP and Jan. 6

Posted on (Updated by By Olivia Alafriz

A bitter clash over the aftermath of the Jan. 6 attack erupted between two prominent Republicans on Saturday, as Liz Cheney accused Rep. Elise Stefanik of covering up her past criticism of the Jan. 6 attack and branded Stefanik a "total crackpot."

Stefanik, one of Donald Trump's most vocal supporters in Congress, lashed back at Cheney and accused her of having a "mental breakdown." Taunting the former Wyoming lawmaker, Stefanik jeered in a statement that Cheney "will never hold any elected office again."

The caustic personal spat exposed how raw and angry the wounds of Jan. 6 remain within the Republican Party. Few lawmakers embody the political consequences of that day more than Cheney, who lost her role in House leadership after voting to impeach Trump, and Stefanik, who replaced Cheney in that role and gained ever greater prominence as a Trump defender.

The two were both previously seen as next-generation leaders of the Republican establishment, before diverging in their views of Trump. Cheney has recently vowed to do anything she can to stop Trump's return to the White House, while Stefanik is widely seen as campaigning to become Trump's running mate.

On Tuesday, Cheney tweeted at Stefanik and linked to her 2021 press release on the Jan. 6 attack, saying: “This is what ⁦⁦@EliseStefanik said, in a rare moment of honesty, about the January 6 attack on our Capitol. One day she will have to explain how and why she morphed into a total crackpot. History, and our children, deserve to know."

In Stefanik’s 2021 press release, she condemned the “violence and destruction” of Jan. 6 and called for the perpetrators to be prosecuted.

On Saturday, Cheney posted again to point out that the statement in question was no longer available on Stefanik’s official House website.

As of Saturday morning, the website showed no press releases prior to 2023. Cheney's team insists the press releases were there at the beginning of this week. A spokesperson for Stefanik noted that her previous statements could still be found on several social media channels.

The sharp exchange Saturday previewed in part what a general election debate over Jan. 6 might look like, if Stefanik ends up on the Republican ticket and Cheney campaigns against it.

Republican pollster Christine Matthews described the unfolding fight as "the story of two women: one who put principles above ambition and the other who put ambition above principles.”

“It is also the story of the evolution of the Republican Party, which once used issues as a litmus test for who was inside and who was outside the norm. Now it uses pitch — whoever matches their pitch to Trump most closely is the person who belongs inside the party,” Matthews continued, pointing to Stefanik’s shift to the party's hard right flank over time, both in style and substance.

Cheney formerly was vice chair of the House Select Committee on the Jan. 6 attack — which Stefanik has described as ”illegitimate and unconstitutional.” Her work on the committee drew and vote for his impeachment drew Trump's ire and she lost in the primary for her Wyoming House seat in 2022.

Stefanik has frequently downplayed the significance of the attack on the Capitol and cast doubt on the legitimacy of legal action against the attack’s participants.

On Jan. 7 of this year, Stefanik referred to those imprisoned for offenses related to Jan. 6 as “hostages” in an appearance on “Meet The Press.”

“I have concerns about the treatment of the January 6 hostages,“ she added.

Cheney called her out for it later that morning on “Face the Nation.”

"You don't have to take my word for the fact that you can't count on these elected Republicans to defend the Constitution. ... They demonstrate it themselves," she said.

Since that exchange, Stefanik has urged GOP candidates to drop out of the race following Trump's victory in Iowa and joined the former president on the campaign trail in New Hampshire, further burnishing her credentials as a potential vice president pick.

She told reporters in New Hampshire she'd be "honored" to serve in the Trump administration, adding that Trump is going to "restore the rule of law" and "restore respect for the Constitution in this nation."

Stefanik’s views on Jan. 6 are widely shared by the Republican base — which has become more accepting of the attack on the Capitol over time — but the riot and its aftermath remains a thorny issue for the Trump campaign in the general election, even as they look to wrap up the Republican primary.

David Cohen contributed to this report.

CORRECTION: This article has been updated to correct an editing error regarding Cheney's home state.
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Hunter Biden business associate Rob Walker says Joe Biden was ‘never involved’ in business dealings

Posted on by Latest Political News on Fox News

Hunter Biden business associate Rob Walker told congressional investigators on Friday that President Biden was "never involved in any of" his son’s business activities.

Walker testified for hours before the House Oversight and Judiciary Committees after being subpoenaed to do so last year. 

Walker arrived at 10 a.m. ET. When he left just before 6 p.m., he told reporters: "I answered questions to the best of my ability." 

HUNTER BIDEN BIZ ASSOCIATE ROB WALKER TO TESTIFY ON BEING ALLEGED 'VEHICLE' FOR BIDEN FAMILY'S FOREIGN FUNDS

Fox News Digital obtained a copy of Walker’s opening statement, in which he testified under oath that the allegations against the president and the first son are "unfounded," but welcomed the opportunity to "provide context to some of the events that are frequently the public focus of the members of these committees."

Walker said he and Hunter "became friends" during the Clinton administration in 1999 and began working together around 2008 by "developing business with, and consulting for, various individuals, businesses, and NGO’s (non-governmental organizations)."

Walker said Hunter "is an intelligent, caring, and generous person, and his demeanor and strong interpersonal skills made him a valued and effective business partner."

He also said Hunter "lost his way" when his brother, Beau Biden, "became seriously ill" and later passed away.

"I’m glad he’s recovering and hope he and his family are doing well," Walker said.

He went on to detail his business with Hunter, saying the opportunities they pursued together were "varied, varied, well-founded, and well within the bounds of legitimate business activities."

"To be clear, President Biden — while in office or as a private citizen — was never involved in any of the business activities we pursued. Any statement to the contrary is simply false," Walker testified. "Hunter made sure there was always a clear boundary between any business and his father. Always."

He added: "And as his partner, I always understood and respected that boundary." 

Walker said that he is "very concerned" that his testimony "may be taken out of context to further a political objective, rather than to discover the truth."

6 ADDITIONAL BIDEN FAMILY MEMBERS 'MAY HAVE BENEFITED' FROM HUNTER BUSINESS DEALINGS

"I therefore respectfully ask that any public statements about this interview be accompanied by the release of the entire transcript of what I say here today, so that members of the public can form their own conclusions about what did and did not happen during my business relationship with Hunter," he said.

Walker's testimony came as part of the House impeachment inquiry against President Biden. 

Hours into his transcribed interview, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, told reporters that Walker testified that "a couple of weeks after Joe Biden leaves the vice presidency, Hunter Biden and his team, these guys, do business with, enter a contract with, this affiliate of CEFC, the Chinese energy company." 

Jordan said "a few days later there's a lunch at the Four Seasons" that CEFC executives, Hunter, James Gilliar and Walker attended. Jordan said, "Joe Biden stops and gives a presentation." Jordan said days later, $3 million was sent to Walker from the Chinese company. 

"I think that's just the timing, just a sequence," Jordan said. 

In notifying his attorney of his subpoena in November, Jordan and House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer, R-Ky., explained that Walker set up his limited liability company, Robinson Walker LLC. The chairmen said it was "used as a vehicle to receive foreign funds and send a percentage of the money to Biden family members."

One example Comer and Jordan provided is when Joe Biden served as vice president, Robinson Walker LLC received millions of dollars from a company owned by Gabriel Popoviciu, a Romanian who was then the subject of a high-profile corruption prosecution in his home country.

BIDEN FAMILY RECEIVED MORE THAN $1M FROM HUNTER ASSOCIATE AFTER 2017 CHINA WIRE: HOUSE OVERSIGHT

"Following the receipt of this money, Robinson Walker sent over one million dollars to Biden family accounts, including those of Hunter Biden and Hallie Biden," Comer and Jordan wrote.

But Comer and Jordan flagged that those payments from Romania to Robinson Walker LLC started "within approximately five weeks of then-Vice President Biden meeting with the President of Romania, where, according to the official readout, the issue of corruption was discussed."

When asked what Hunter did for Popoviciu, Walker told the committee that Hunter flew to Romania to meet with U.S. Ambassador to Romania Hans Klemm, who had just been confirmed.

HOUSE OVERSIGHT SUBPOENAS HUNTER BIDEN, JAMES BIDEN, ROB WALKER FOR TESTIMONY AMID IMPEACHMENT INQUIRY

Comer and Jordan also note that Robinson Walker LLC received the payment of $3 million from State Energy HK Limited, a Chinese company, in February 2017, less than two months after Biden left the Obama administration. Comer and Jordan said that in the three months following that payment, Robinson Walker LLC made "incremental payments totaling over one million dollars to Biden family members and their companies, including Hallie Biden and entities associated with Hunter Biden and James Biden."

According to an FBI FD-302 form detailing Walker's 2021 interview with Special Counsel David Weiss' team and obtained by the House Ways and Means Committee, Walker said the "$3 million amount was more of a ‘thank you’ from CEFC." 

Comer and Jordan, in subpoenaing Walker, said he may be able to provide evidence relevant to the impeachment inquiry, saying that Walker "played a key role in the Biden family’s business dealings and the chain of complex financial transactions that was used to hide the foreign sources of the funds received by the Biden family."

After receiving money from the CEFC entity in March 2017, Walker testified Hunter told him to send payments to his uncle, James Biden, and sister-in-law, Hallie Biden, even though they did not do work for the CEFC entity. Further, James Biden wanted a piece of the CEFC entity money despite not being involved in the deal. Walker called Hunter to approve the money transfer to James Biden. 

Fox News Politics: Jury orders Trump to pay massive damages

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Welcome to Fox News’ Politics newsletter with the latest political news from Washington D.C. and updates from the 2024 campaign trail. 

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What's happening?

- GOP moves to defund sanctuary cities

- Biden approval rating hits rock bottom 

- Dem calls out soft-on-crime prosecutors

Former President Trump was ordered to pay over $83 million in damages to E. Jean Carroll after she sued him for what she called defamatory statements following her accusation that he sexually assaulted her.

The trial was not about whether Trump sexually assaulted Carroll – a jury in a Manhattan civil trial last year already found Trump liable for the alleged assault, which Trump vehemently denies.

"Absolutely ridiculous!" Trump wrote on Truth Social after the verdict came down. "I fully disagree with both verdicts, and will be appealing this whole Biden Directed Witch Hunt focused on me and the Republican Party," Trump posted on his TRUTH Social shortly after the verdict was read. "Our Legal System is out of control, and being used as a Political Weapon. They have taken away all First Amendment Rights." 

Trump added: "THIS IS NOT AMERICA!"

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‘Sugar brother’ Kevin Morris loaned Hunter Biden $6.5M for debts and back taxes, more than previous estimate

Posted on by Latest Political News on Fox News

Kevin Morris loaned Hunter Biden approximately $6.5 million — over $1 million more than originally estimated and discussed, his attorney revealed in a letter this week. 

Fox News obtained a letter Kevin Morris’ attorney sent to the House Oversight Committee this week. The letter shows a breakdown of the loans and when Morris wants those loans repaid.

KEVIN MORRIS GAVE 'MASSIVE' FINANCIAL SUPPORT TO HUNTER BIDEN, RAISING CAMPAIGN FINANCE CONCERNS: COMER

Morris was subpoenaed to appear before the committee for a transcribed interview as part of the House impeachment inquiry.

During his interview, Morris testified that he loaned Hunter Biden at least $5 million and began paying his tax liability.

Morris and his attorney were estimating during the interview, a source told Fox News, and promised to follow-up with exact figures loaned to the first son.

The letter outlines an additional $1.6 million more than Morris had estimated during the interview.

Morris, on Oct. 13, 2021, gave Hunter Biden a loan for approximately $1.4 million. According to the letter, Hunter Biden was to repay the loan, with $500,000 paid by Oct. 1, 2026 and the remaining $417, 634 by Oct. 1, 2027, plus interest.

A few days later, Morris loaned Hunter Biden $2.6 million, with directions to repay the loan by Oct. 1, 2029. That loan, according to Morris’ lawyer, "was used to pay, among other debts, Mr. Biden’s tax debt to the IRS."

On Oct. 17, 2022, Morris loaned Hunter Biden $640,355 to be repaid by Oct. 15, 2027.

HUNTER BIDEN LAWYER TESTIFIES THAT 1ST TRUMP IMPEACHMENT CREATED 'EMERGENCY' TO FILE UNPAID TAXES

On Dec. 30, 2022, Morris loaned Hunter $685,813.99, to be repaid by Oct. 15, 2027.

On Dec. 29, 2023, Morris loaned Hunter approximately $1.2 million to be repaid by Oct. 15, 2028, with all interest paid by October 2029.

"As negotiated by separate attorneys for Mr. Morris and Mr. Biden, each of these notes has an interest rate of 5%, a set payment term, and were negotiated by separate attorneys for Mr. Morris and Mr. Biden," the letter states.

In the letter, Morris’ attorney, whose name is redacted, claimed House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer and "other members" have ignored "the request we made to refrain from mischaracterizing Mr. Morris’ testimony in a public statement." 

"One more time—I am asking that this letter and its information not be released out of its context of the questions and answers Mr. Morris gave at his transcribed interview on January 18, 2024," the attorney wrote. "Nothing in this letter shall be considered a waiver of any of my client’s rights, objections, or claims, all of which are expressly reserved." 

Morris told the House panel last week that "With respect to the loans, I am confident that Hunter will repay. I did not and do not have any expectations of receiving anything from Hunter's father or the Biden administration in exchange from helping Hunter, nor have I asked for anything from President Biden or his administration."

Special Counsel David Weiss charged Biden with nine federal tax charges, which break down to three felonies and six misdemeanors for $1.4 million in owed taxes that have since been paid.

Weiss charged Hunter in December, alleging a "four-year scheme" in which the president's son did not pay his federal income taxes from January 2017 to October 2020 while also filing false tax reports.

Hunter Biden pleaded not guilty to all charges.

Weiss also indicted the first son on federal gun charges in Delaware last year. Hunter Biden pleaded not guilty to those charges as well. His attorneys are attempting to have that case dismissed.

Fox News' Lee Ross contributed to this report. 

GOP senator who voted to acquit Paxton wants Senate to consider reopening impeachment proceedings

Posted on by Texas Tribune

By Patrick Svitek, The Texas Tribune

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A Republican state senator who voted to acquit Ken Paxton in his impeachment trial last year wants the Senate to consider restarting proceedings now that the attorney general is no longer fighting the whistleblower claims in court that were central to the trial.

The bombshell request came in a letter Thursday from retiring state Sen. Drew Springer to Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and his Senate colleagues.

“At this stage, and the point of this letter, I am asking the Senate whether there is a legal mechanism to reopen the impeachment proceedings,” Springer wrote. “Failure to at least consider this possibility runs the risk of AG Paxton making a mockery of the Texas Senate.”

Springer’s letter came days after Paxton announced he would not contest the facts of the whistleblower lawsuit in an attempt to end it without having to testify under oath. The lawsuit was filed in 2020 by a group of former top deputies who said they were improperly fired for telling federal authorities they believed Paxton was abusing his office to help a wealthy friend and donor, Nate Paul.

Paxton’s recent reversal in the whistleblower lawsuit was especially striking because one of the articles of impeachment that he was acquitted on alleged that he violated the Texas Whistleblower Act. Springer wrote that Paxton “completely changed his position in less than four months.”

A spokesperson for Patrick, who served as judge in the trial, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Paxton dismissed Springer's letter in a statement to the Tribune.

"Springer has to leave the senate because he was such a bad senator, wasn’t going to get re-elected, and needed a job," Paxton said. "Why should anyone listen to his sour grapes."

After Springer released his letter, a Democratic senator who voted to convict Paxton, Sen. Sarah Eckhardt of Austin, said on X that she supports "reopening the impeachment proceedings" in light of Paxton's latest legal maneuvering.

In his latest move to end the lawsuit, Paxton also said he would accept any judgment, potentially opening up taxpayers to more than the $3.3 million sum that was in a tentative settlement deal last year. Springer said Paxton has “essentially written a blank check” at the taxpayers’ expense and that he should have to answer questions under oath if he seeks any funding approval from the Legislature.

Despite his reversal, Paxton has not been able to wriggle out of the lawsuit in Travis County district court. As of now, he is required to sit for a deposition on Feb. 1.

Springer’s letter comes as he is freer from political consequences than most of his GOP colleagues because he is not seeking reelection. But his term is not over until January 2025, giving him a voice in the Senate for nearly another year.

Springer was one of 16 GOP senators who voted to acquit Paxton on all impeachment articles — and keep him in office — at the trial in September. Springer seemed especially conflicted with the decision after facing political threats in his solidly red district.

In the race to succeed Springer, Paxton has endorsed Carrie de Moor, a Frisco emergency room physician who surfaced as a potential challenger while the trial was still underway. Springer is backing one of de Moor’s rivals, Brent Hagenbuch, the former Denton County GOP leader. Patrick has also endorsed Hagenbuch.

This article originally appeared in The Texas Tribune.

The Texas Tribune is a member-supported, nonpartisan newsroom informing and engaging Texans on state politics and policy. Learn more at texastribune.org.

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Texas lawmaker calls for AG Ken Paxton impeachment inquiry to be reopened

Posted on by Latest Political News on Fox News

A Texas state senator wants to reopen the impeachment case against state Attorney General Ken Paxton.

State Sen. Drew Springer, a Republican from Muenster, urged his colleagues in the Texas Senate to take a second look at impeachment charges against Paxton after the attorney general said he would not contest allegations in a whistleblower lawsuit. 

"He cannot admit guilt while claiming innocence," Springer wrote on X. "I urge the Lt. Gov & my Senate colleagues to consider reopening Paxton's impeachment. Paxton has not only admitted to violating the articles of impeachment, but he is exposing Texas taxpayers to a settlement of WELL OVER $3.3M. Texans deserve the truth!"

Paxton was acquitted in September of all impeachment articles filed against him for corruption and unfitness for office. He had faced accusations that he misused his political power to help real estate developer Nate Paul — allegations that stemmed from a lawsuit filed by four former employees who reported him to the FBI. 

TEXAS AG PAXTON ACQUITTED ON ALL IMPEACHMENT CHARGES: ‘THE TRUTH PREVAILED’

The whistleblowers — Blake Brickman, Ryan Vassar, Mark Penley and David Maxwell — claimed that they were unjustly terminated for reporting Paxton. 

Springer voted for Paxton's acquittal on 16 impeachment charges at trial in September. However, he now says that "recent developments have made me question whether AG Paxton and his legal team misled the Senate." 

TRUMP WEIGHS IN ON TEXAS AG KEN PAXTON IMPEACHMENT TRIAL, ARGUES ‘ESTABLISHMENT RINOS’ WANT TO ‘UNDO’ ELECTION

What happened? Last week, the Office of the Attorney General said in a court filing it could "obtain a verdict in this case in its favor," but instead moved to settle the lawsuit to "stop the self-aggrandizing political weaponization of our State’s courts by rogue employees who have what seems to be a monomaniacal goal to undermine the will of the voters," FOX 7 Austin reported.

"Doing so precludes further unwarranted expense to the people of the State of Texas as well as the disruption to the State’s principal law enforcement arm — the time and personnel of which are more appropriately dedicated to the business of the State of Texas and not the personal, political agenda of four rogue, former employees," the filing states.

EXTRAMARITAL AFFAIR DETAILS SURFACE IN HISTORIC IMPEACHMENT TRIAL OF TEXAS AG KEN PAXTON

In the filing, Paxton stated, "OAG hereby elects not to contest any issue of fact in this case, as to the claim or damages." 

Springer argues this amounts to an admission of guilt that should be reviewed by the legislature.

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"While AG Paxton claims this decision is not an admission of guilt, the fact of the matter is it is an admission of guilt. He can't accept the whistleblower's claims against him while touting that he's innocent against those very claims," Springer said. 

The Office of the Attorney General did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

House Democrat blasts ‘sham impeachment’ ahead of Mayorkas vote

Posted on by Congress

House Democrats are ramping up their criticism of a GOP-led effort to impeach Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas ahead of next week’s committee vote.

Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.), the top Democrat on the Homeland Security panel, sent a letter to Committee Chair Mark Green (R-Tenn.), accusing him of breaking House precedent and denying Mayorkas due process as the chair moved toward marking up articles of impeachment.

The letter, obtained exclusively by POLITICO, underscores how Democrats are likely to respond during next week’s committee vote and as Republicans move toward a floor vote as soon as the week of Feb. 5, on what would be a historic recommendation to oust a Cabinet secretary.

Read the full letter.

“This unserious impeachment is a testament to partisan politics over rules and reason,” Thompson wrote.

“Given the grave importance of impeachment — which you once described as ‘probably the most extreme remedy that our constitution affords for taking someone out of office’ — this Committee should do better. At the very least, it should follow the rules and practices established over more than two centuries of congressional history,” he added.

Thompson, in his letter, laid out several points of contention, including the House not formally authorizing an impeachment inquiry into Mayorkas. Instead, the House voted last year to send an impeachment resolution from Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) to Green’s committee, which had been doing a months-long investigation into Mayorkas and his handling of the border.

Thompson also accused Republicans, among other things, of violating ethics rules, denying Mayokras the chance to testify and denying Democrats’ hearing request.

Republicans and DHS have gone back-and-forth over Mayorkas’ testimony. Green has accused the secretary of refusing to testify as part of the impeachment investigation and also asked him to submit written testimony as a backup. A DHS spokesperson said earlier this month that Mayorkas had offered to testify publicly, but “the Committee failed to respond to DHS to find a mutually agreeable date.”

The committee is expected to vote to impeach Mayorkas along party lines next week after every Republican on the panel released a joint statement backing the step. Republicans will then need to work over a handful of skeptical members within their own ranks, given their razor-thin, two-vote majority on the floor.

“After our nearly year-long investigation and subsequent impeachment proceedings, and having exhausted all other options to hold him accountable, it is unmistakably clear to all of us — and to the American people — that Congress must exercise its constitutional duty and impeach Secretary Mayorkas,” Republicans on the panel said in a joint statement.

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