John Cornyn

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Legal Scrutiny Intensifies Over Texas AG paxton’s Property Declarations and Past Conduct

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton is once again facing intense legal and political scrutiny, this time concerning his real estate transactions and past alleged misconduct. The focus sharpens on discrepancies in property declarations and a history of legal challenges that have marked his tenure.

One particular point of contention involves a property in Virginia. While one document indicated that James intended to establish it as her “principal residence,” other statements from the New York Attorney General’s office, including an email sent to a mortgage loan broker just two weeks before signing the relevant paperwork, explicitly stated the property “WILL NOT be my primary residence.” James’ attorney, Lowell, has countered these claims, stating, “As I’ve said from the beginning, if prosecutors want to know that truth about Attorney General James’ mortgage applications, we are ready and waiting with the facts.”

In contrast, Representative Adam Schiff, who represents California, has maintained a consistent approach to his primary residences. For over a decade, Schiff has owned homes in both Maryland and california, with both properties designated as his primary residence. In 2020, while serving as a congressman, Schiff reclassified his Maryland property as a second home, a step that Paxton has not taken.

Paxton’s real estate dealings are not the first instance to draw attention to his conduct in office. Prior to his election as attorney general, Paxton admitted to violating Texas securities law in 2014, resulting in a fine. He remained under state indictment for securities charges for approximately ten years while serving as attorney general, with these charges ultimately being dismissed in 2024.Further allegations of misconduct in office led to his impeachment by the Texas House of Representatives, controlled by the Republican party, in 2023. He was subsequently acquitted in a trial held by the Texas Senate.

Adding another layer to the ongoing scrutiny, Angela Paxton, Ken Paxton’s wife and a Texas Senator, recently filed for divorce. Citing Ken Paxton’s infidelity and “other recent discoveries,” she did not provide further details.Notably, Angela Paxton abstained from voting in her husband’s impeachment trial.

The impeachment proceedings were significantly fueled by Paxton’s association with austin real estate developer Nate Paul, who has as pleaded guilty to making a false statement to a financial institution. In 2020, eight senior aides within Paxton’s office alerted the FBI to concerns that the state’s chief law enforcement officer might be leveraging his position to assist Paul, who had made unsubstantiated claims of a vast conspiracy to seize $200 million worth of his properties.

The House impeachment managers accused Paxton of attempting to obstruct foreclosure proceedings and issuing legal opinions that favored Paul. They also alleged that Paul had employed a woman with whom Paxton was having an affair in exchange for legal assistance,and that the developer had financed significant renovations to the attorney general’s austin residence. This same Austin home is the property that Paxton declared as his third primary residence in mortgage documents.

It is indeed critically important to note a correction regarding the paxtons’ property tax benefits. The Associated Press has clarified that the Paxtons did not receive an impermissible homestead tax break in 2018 for one of their Austin homes. Instead, this benefit was transferred to them from a previous owner for the remainder of that year.