Throughout the week, I’ve been keeping a close eye on the impeachment proceedings against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton. Not only is it a fascinating topic for politics and public ethics enthusiasts like myself, but there are also some incredibly talented young journalists covering the trial for our Hearst Corp. sibling papers in Texas. Two of these journalists, Cayla Harris and Ed McKinley, actually spent their first year as part of the Hearst Fellowship program covering the New York Capitol. Cayla wrote an exceptional profile on then-Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo just after he had passed the peak of his popularity as the nation’s pandemic leader. Ed arrived shortly after and witnessed the downfall of Cuomo’s administration.
Ed left New York and transitioned to Austin in July of 2021, just a week before Cuomo announced his resignation following a report from the attorney general’s office accusing him of sexual harassment. Cuomo initially stated that his resignation would save the state from a drawn-out impeachment process. However, later on, he suggested that he wouldn’t receive a fair trial from the state Senate and the Court of Appeals. After listening to a significant portion of the Paxton impeachment proceedings, I must confess that Cuomo’s argument seems even more feeble, and it’s a shame that we were denied the opportunity for this form of civic catharsis.
Of course, there are differences between Cuomo’s case and Paxton’s. For starters, there is overwhelming evidence indicating that Paxton abused his position in order to benefit a political donor, Nate Paul, who had gotten into trouble with federal investigators. Paul went so far as to hire Paxton’s mistress and allegedly helped cover extensive home repairs for the attorney general and his wife. During the Paxton trial, his former mistress, who coincidentally dressed similarly to a character from the movie “Basic Instinct,” showed up and invoked her right to remain silent. On the other hand, the case against Cuomo, as detailed in a report prepared for the Assembly Judiciary Committee, involves allegations of sexual harassment, the production of a COVID memoir, and obstruction of COVID death reporting in nursing homes.
As expected, these issues have remained controversial and subject to ongoing legal battles. Cuomo’s defense in civil cases brought by two of his accusers has cost the state millions in attorney fees. Additionally, an investigation into his memoir has been temporarily halted due to a judge’s ruling that the state Commission on Ethics and Lobbying in Government, an organization with a somewhat comical name, operates independently of executive control in an unconstitutional manner.
Oh, how everything could have been resolved, or at least partially, through a Senate impeachment trial two years ago.
When I expressed my disappointment to Cuomo’s spokesperson, Rich Azzopardi, he insisted that the impeachments of Cuomo and Paxton were completely different. He reiterated some of the points he made in a letter to a reputable publication when I previously criticized Cuomo’s late requests for due process. Azzopardi acknowledged that impeachment is a political process, not a legal one. This holds true not only in Texas but also in other states and at the federal level. He also noted that several elected officials called for Cuomo’s resignation after the release of the attorney general’s report, whereas Paxton faced similar demands but refused to step down. Both Paxton’s office and Cuomo’s administration issued reports that conveniently cleared them of any wrongdoing.
In 2021, both Paxton and Cuomo were members of the dominant party in their respective states, with significant control over the legislature. Paxton attempted to attribute his troubles to traitorous members of his own party, while Cuomo maintained that he was a victim of the far-left faction within the Democratic Party. Ironically, he supported the current attorney general during her first campaign in 2018.
It’s undeniable that many Republicans today often turn a blind eye to misconduct within their ranks, particularly in the Trump wing of the party. Democrats, on the other hand, are nominally more inclined to hold their own members accountable. Paxton is banking on this, and Cuomo seems well aware of the dynamic.
In conclusion, it’s a shame that we missed out on the opportunity to have all of this addressed and resolved in a Senate impeachment trial two years ago.
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