‘AG Paxton Committed No Crime’: Texas Attorney General Clears Self of Bribery Accusations in Unsigned ReportTexas Attorney General Ken Paxton (R), who has spent the better part of six-year tenure under indictment for securities fraud, committed no crime. That’s the finding of a new report by Paxton’s office clearing the attorney general of unrelated bribery accusations leveled against him by his former employees.
“AG Paxton’s actions were lawful, and consistent with his legal duties and prior actions taken by Attorneys General of Texas,” the first bullet point of his executive summary states. “AG Paxton committed no crime.”
In a report totaling 374 pages with exhibits, Paxton’s office found that the former employees alleging otherwise have “no evidence” of a “quid pro quo”—that Latin phrase meaning “this for that,” the type of transactions forbidden by public office holders under anti-corruption law.
Several of Paxton’s ex-top aides—described in the report as the “Complainants”—accused him of improper influence in the case of Austin real estate investor Nate Paul, who donated to the attorney general’s 2018 re-election campaign. They claimed the attorney general performed a series of favors for Paul, allegedly in return for a job for Paxton’s mistress, according to the Houston Chronicle. Paul has been under a lengthy FBI investigation, and the investor’s properties in the Lone Star State’s capital were raided on Aug. 19, 2020.
